Doggy Daycare B N' B Style
by Bonefan21
Summary: Russ and Emma have to ask Bones to dog watch their new six-month-old German shepherd puppy. What happens when Bones ropes Booth into helping her dog watch? Be prepared for some fast action, comedy and a little bit of fluff.
1. Chapter 1

A/N This story came about as the result of a Fanfic challenge on the Fox FF site

**A/N **This story came about as the result of a Fanfic challenge on the Fox FF site. Has to be a story about B & B and a puppy, no Parker allowed. So, here is what happens when Russ and Emma have to ask Bones to dog watch their new six-month-old German shepherd puppy. Be prepared for some fast action, comedy and a little bit of fluff.

Doggy Day Care B N' B Style

Friday night

Brennan looked up from her computer, she tilted her head, listening intently, trying to figure out what she had heard. It was after five on a Friday and most of the employees had already left for home. She had promised Booth that she would only be another thirty to forty minutes and then they could go to the diner.

She glanced over at the couch in her office, and realized the noise she had heard was the sound of Booth snoring. A small smile formed at the corners of Brennan's mouth and slowly turned into a full fledged grin. Since they had put in another eighty hours this week, she figured he needed all the rest he could get.

She brought up her Word program and opened the file with the next chapter in her newest book and began to type. Ten minutes later a sudden loud commotion disturbed their peaceful environment.

From outside her office door she heard the night security guard say, "I'm sorry sir, but you can't bring the puppy in here, this is a restricted area. The lab must maintain a sterile atmosphere."

"I'm sorry, but this is a family emergency, I need to talk to my sister, Dr. Temperance Brennan, right away," she heard Russ say frantically.

Brennan got up from her chair and started towards her office door, but she'd only taken a couple of steps when she heard her niece yelling, "Aunt Tempe! Aunt Tempe, where are you? Then…"Barney, stop!"

A German Shepherd puppy suddenly bounded into view, scrambling at full speed on his long, unsteady legs, panting and choking as he strained at his leash. Emma tried to slow down her six-month-old puppy, as he continued dragging her along, it was soon apparent that she wouldn't be able to stop him. The two of them came crashing through the door with Emma sliding along behind him like she was on a pair of water skies.

With a startled gasp, Brennan jumped back, trying to get out of their path, but she was not fast enough. Emma and Barney plowed full tilt into her and all three went flying backwards and landed on Booth. The couch slid across the floor about a foot, and rocked back on two legs and promptly flipped over backwards.

Booth gave a startled gasp. As the couch had begun to tip over, Booth frantically threw his weight forward, trying to keep everyone from flying over backwards. Unfortunately that was impossible. However, he was able to keep them from flying through the glass window and out into the hallway. He managed to choke out between a couple of curse words, "What…!? What, the heck is going on, Bones? Geez, can't a guy take a nap in peace?!"

"Oh, my God, are you guys alright?" Russ asked. "I'm sorry Tempe; I didn't think Barney would go nuts when he saw you. Guess I overestimated his love for you," he said with an apologetic smile.

"You call that love? He nearly killed us," Brennan said in a huff. "What happened to those obedience classes I am paying through the nose for?

"Aunt Tempe, we are taking Barney to obedience classes, he was just so excited to see you," Emma tried to explain.

Brennan had to admit the dog was rather cute. When Russ brought him home as a twelve week old puppy, his ears had been held upright so high they had actually crossed one over the other like an X. He had vivid, bright orange tan points over each eye, and tan along both sides of his cheeks, down his neck and into his chest. All four legs were a combination of bright orange to a light cream colored tan. His shiny black coat looked like velvet.

She had been thrilled that Amy and Russ had decided to buy the girls a dog, especially after all the young family had been through in the last year. She knew Barney would help Haley out in the months and years ahead as she continued to deal with her Cystic Fibrosis.

"Okay, now that everyone has calmed down a little, what exactly are you doing here Russ? I heard you telling the security guard something about a family emergency? Brennan asked. "Why is Barney here?"

"Amy's parents were involved in a car accident. Both of them suffered head and neck injuries, and will have to stay overnight for observation. Tempe, I can't find anyone else on such short notice to watch Barney. I swear you would only have to keep him until Sunday evening." Russ promised.

Emma looked over at her Aunt Brennan and with pleading eyes began to beg, "Please, please, Aunt Tempe, can Barney stay with you? I promise he'll be good."

Booth couldn't keep his opinion to himself and added, "Bones, he's just a baby. How hard can it be? Besides, think of all the fun you guys will have, going for long walks and playing ball."

Brennan rolled her eyes at her partner and said, "Did you not see Barney dragging Emma in here like she was on the end of some sled dog racing team?"

"Bones, give Barney a break. You know that old saying; absence makes the heart grow fonder?" Booth asked with a wink. "Besides," he whispered, "you really want to disappoint Emma?"

_What? Excuse me! Who is he kidding? I mean really, he does have a son. Did he forget how hard it is to take care of a young child, let alone a rambunctious six-month-old puppy who can't sit still for two seconds? Okay if he thinks this is so easy, I'll show him, _Brennan thought.

"Fine," She huffed. "I'll watch Barney for the weekend under one condition. Booth, you have to stay at my place. The house is already baby-proof thanks to Andy staying with me a few weeks ago."

Booth's head jerked up with a snap, "Wait…What if I get called into work?"

"Do you really think they will call you after all the hours you put in this week?" Brennan asked. "Besides, you think this is so easy, I can't wait to see how you deal with Barney and all his little antics," she added with a smirk.

Barney was laying upside down, his back legs scratching the air in ecstasy as Booth rubbed his belly.

"Uncle Booth, you and Aunt Tempe would make a great team. Look how much Barney likes you," Emma said.

Brennan whispered to Booth loud enough for everyone to hear, "Yeah, Booth do you really want to disappoint Emma?"

"Fine, if you insist I'll stay and help out," Booth said with a resigned sigh.

"What about a baby? Who's Andy?" Russ asked his sister in confusion.

"Never mind Russ, it's a long story. I'll tell you all about it some other time. If you're going to make it to Amy's parent's house, and then the hospital before visiting hours are over, you need to get going. Don't worry about Barney, he'll be fine. I'm sure he and I will come to some kind of understanding before the weekend is over," she said, a determined glint in her eye.

"So, Russ did you bring everything Barney needs to stay for the weekend? You know, dog food, toys, water and food dishes, a crate to ride home in the car with and to sleep in at night, etc.?" Brennan asked.

"Yes, Aunt Tempe." Emma told her with a grateful smile. She leaned down and whispered into Barney's ear, "See, I told you she would take care of you, she doesn't like to see anyone, human or animal abandoned."

"Well, I guess we had all better walk out together so we can load up Barney and all of his paraphernalia," Brennan said with a resigned sigh as she closed down her computer, grabbed her coat and started to walk out of her office.

They didn't get very far before Emma said, "Hey, Barney what are you doing?" Barney had planted himself in the middle of Brennan's office, nearly yanking Emma's arm out of its socket. Suddenly there was a loud psss sound and everyone said in unison, "Oh, Barney couldn't you wait?!"

"Didn't you make sure Barney urinated before you brought him here?" Brennan demanded.

"Yes, I swear Aunt Tempe, I took him out to potty but he wouldn't go. Barney, I can't believe you just did that. My goodness how long have you been holding it? You've left a mini lake in Aunt Tempe's office," Emma whined to Barney in a loud embarrassed whisper.

At that moment, Dr. Saroyan emerged from her office and said, "Dr. Brennan, you realize there is a reason why pets aren't allowed in the Jeffersonian? I hope you plan on cleaning that up before you all leave? I don't want to hear the janitor complaining that cleaning up dog urine wasn't in his job description."

"I'm sorry Dr. Saroyan, we're cleaning it up now," Russ said. "Tempe didn't bring the dog here. We have a family emergency. We're leaving as soon as Tempe takes Barney and all his stuff with her. I wouldn't want to jeopardize her job."

"Not a problem, just don't make a habit of it. I don't need him to be here one day when one of our inspectors drops in," Dr. Saroyan said.

About ten minutes later Brennan and Booth had finished putting Barney and all of his belongings in her car.

"Well, what are we doing about dinner, Bones?" Booth asked. "I'm sure you don't want to leave Barney in the car while we're eating."

"No, not really, as according to Russ, he's still not good about staying in his crate for long periods of time. I'll just take him home. You go home and get your overnight things and on the way back you can pick us up something to eat. That way you'll still have your car to get to work in on Monday."

"Yeah, that sounds like a plan. So, what do you want for dinner…? Wong Foo's sound good to you? Booth asked.

"Sure, Sid always seems to know what I like. Guess I'll see you at the house later." Brennan said as she opened the driver's door to her car and got in.

"I should be over in about an hour. I'll call Sid."

After dinner they had taken Barney out to potty and exercise in the back parking lot. Brennan asked Booth to remove his shoes when they returned to the apartment as they had walked through several mud puddles and she didn't want her floors getting dirty. Booth had barely gotten both shoes off before he suddenly found himself being dragged across the front hallway linoleum floor in his red and white candy cane striped socks.

"Whoa…Where are you going boy?" Booth yelled at Barney as he continued to drag him down the hall and into Bones kitchen. _Wow, _Booth thought, _Parker would think this was so cool! You know what? This is fun, nothing like skiing throughout the house in your stocking feet!_

Brennan had to admit, even if it was only to herself, the two of them were quite the comedy team. With a stifled laugh she said, "Listen you two; it's time to stop goofing around. Booth, put him in his crate. If he gets any more wound up, none of us are going to get any sleep tonight," Brennan said in a no nonsense voice.

"Uh-oh Bud, sounds like Aunty Bones is serious. I guess we better settle down," Booth admonished Barney. He leaned down and took him by the collar and led him to his airline crate. "Barney bed," he said as he motioned with his hand for Barney to get into his crate for the night.

Barney promptly sat down, planted both front feet straight out in front of him, donkey style and refused to get in his crate. Booth reached down and began to push and shove him through the doorway in a vain attempt to force him into the crate. Just when Booth was about to give up, Barney finally flew into the crate and promptly twisted himself right back around and plowed out the door. On his way out he broadsided Booth, knocking him to the floor.

"Hey! Wait a minute Bud! Where do you think you're going?" Booth demanded when he finally regained his breath and was able to pick himself up off the floor. "Come back here," he commanded.

Barney was now across the room, sitting on his right hip, pink tongue lolling from his mouth, head cocked sideways with his ears standing straight up and crossed over at the tips. You could see the wheels turning in his head just by watching his bright orange eyebrows bobbing up and down as he listened to Booth scolding him. As Booth continued to coax him to come get in his bed, Barney would stop panting for just a few seconds, pull his tongue most of the way in and with his lips and teeth forming a Cheshire cat grin he would whine and twist his head from one side to the other as if to say, _Right, you really think I'm going to get in that crate? Not! Come on, I double dog dare you to force me into that box! _

Brennan, who had been quietly watching this little show started to say, "Booth…"

Booth lunged forward to grab Barney's leash and he immediately did a three hundred and sixty degree turn on his haunches and split across the kitchen and out into Brennan's dining room, with Booth hot on his heels. For almost a minute, Brennan watched Booth chase Barney around her apartment before she finally pursed her lips together and gave one long, loud shrill whistle.

Afterwards she yelled, "Barney, come!" To Booth's utter astonishment Barney immediately stopped running from him and went right up to Brennan and sat at the heel position in a perfect sit. He even looked up at her with his tongue hanging out and his tail slowly sweeping across the floor.

"Booth, stop chasing him or he'll never let you catch him. Besides, can't you see he thinks this is some kind of game?" she asked in exasperation.

"Um… Wait…What? How did you get him to do that?" Booth asked her in shock.

"Do what, Booth?" Brennan asked with a wink, as she quickly put her hand up to her mouth to cover her laughter.

"You did hear me ask Russ about those obedience classes I am paying for didn't you?"

"Yeah, but since he wasn't listening to me, I was beginning to think maybe you needed to ask for your money back Bones."

"Oh, Barney has his moments. Besides, he just met you and he likes to test people. You know, to see just how much bad behavior he can get away with? I seem to remember someone saying to give Barney a break, and he's just a baby, how hard can it be to watch him for the weekend. Is any of this ringing a bell with you Booth?"

As they were talking, Barney was still sitting at Brennan's left side in a perfect heel position, watching the two of them _chat, _his head swinging back and forth as each one spoke, his tail continuing it's slow sweep across the floor. Brennan was unconsciously rubbing the backs of his ears as she harassed her partner.

"Okay, Barney this is it." With that Brennan led him over to his crate, opened the door and with a wave of her hand gave the command, "Let's go to bed Barney." Barney walked right into his crate, turned around, poked his head out long enough for her to remove his collar and leash. She closed the door behind him.

"See how easy that was, Booth?" she asked with a smirk.

"Bones, if you knew it would be that easy for you to put Barney to bed, why didn't you just do it instead of having me go through this entire fiasco?"

"Hmm…Let me think…I don't know maybe to teach someone a lesson?" she asked through a fresh burst of uncontrollable laughter.

"Why you… Um…I should really get you for that! You Brat," he sputtered out between his own laughter. _My God, does she realize how beautiful she is? _He wondered. Sometimes, he swore he could get lost in the depths of those sparkling sapphire blue eyes of hers. _Does she know that I am not the only one who has __**evolved**__?_ He had seen the changes she'd made, beginning with the death of her mother, then finding her father and brother. The most recent metamorphous came after her father was cleared of killing Deputy Director Kirby.

After each of these milestones she had allowed another piece of her heart to shine through. He hadn't been sure he was ever going to be able to break down that wall she had built. For someone who said she hated psychology, she had no idea how often her logic fell back on it to rationalize her own actions. He had seen her blowing raspberries on Andy's belly that day, although he never told her that. When she had turned on Chip in a fit of rage for killing Andy's mom and nearly costing the baby his life, he was afraid that the walls she had built were tumbling down faster than she would be able to handle.

_Wow, I never knew until Andy that Bones could turn into a mother tigress protecting her cub. I didn't think she had it in her, and all of that emotion for a child that was not even hers by blood! My God, think what she would have been like if Andy had been her child?_ If he hadn't already been so in love with his partner by then, that whole Andy episode would have done it for him, hands down.

_Oh God where did that come from? Whoa, Seeley let's not go there right now. Neither of us is ready to deal with that subject. We still have two more days of dog watching to get through and if I keep thinking like this I'll never make it without doing something to jeopardize our partnership._

Brennan had been watching Booth for several minutes between her fit of uncontrollable laughter, when she realized that something had changed about his demeanor. He was watching her intently, his dark brown eyes sparkling and she could feel the electricity in the air. _Uh-oh, he has that look he always gets when he is going to play a game of tickle with Parker. No way, he wouldn't dare try that on me, would he?_ She wondered.

"Booth, you wouldn't… No…" Brennan began as she recognized the look on her partner's face. For just a moment the two of them stood there, laughing and grinning like fools.

"Oh, you think I won't? After what you did to embarrass me with Barney? You bet your ass, Bones!"

Brennan let out a loud squeal as Booth came running towards her. She turned and ran towards the hall, trying to make it to the bathroom before he reached her. No such luck. He had her before she had taken more than a few steps.

In an instant they were on the floor, right in front of Barney's crate. Booth wasted no time in tickling her ribs, and before long both of them were laughing and panting hysterically.

"Booth…Booth…I can't…breathe!" she gasped. "Please, stop, I'm begging you."

"Not until you tell me you're sorry, Bones!"

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," she said breathlessly.

Suddenly the air had grown thick with tension again, Brennan's chest was heaving with her labored breathing. Booth was now straddling her hips, watching her.

"Bones, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that."

Brennan's tongue darted out and licked her bottom lip as Booth lowered his eyes to her mouth. She continued to stare up at him. Both of them were flushed and out of breath.

"Bones," he murmured as he leaned forward. Their lips were a breath apart, noses nearly touching. Just as his lips met hers in a feather light kiss, Barney let out a high pitched bark and began frantically clawing at the door of his crate. Brennan screamed and lunged forward, instantly cracking her forehead into Booth's. Booth began to curse, and both of them yelled, 'Geezes, Barney did you have to do that!?

"Ow! Oh my God, are you okay?" they asked in unison.

"Geez, he scared the hell out of me!" Brennan said.

"Ow! My God, Bones, I think you might have broken my nose." Booth mumbled through his hand covering his nose and mouth.

"I'm sorry, Booth. Let me see, maybe it's not broken, just bruised?" Brennan asked.

"Don't touch it, Bones! God, it really hurts."

"Booth, I'm pretty sure it's not broken. "I'll get some ice. I'll be right back," she promised.

"Thanks a lot Barney, not only did you just ruin the mood, because of you my nose might be broken!" Booth hissed at him, as Brennan returned with a bag full of ice for his quickly swelling nose.

"So, Booth, you resorting to talking to the dog now," Brennan asked with her sapphire blue eyes twinkling, trying to stifle another fit of giggles. "Booth, you have to admit this whole thing is pretty funny."

Booth just glared at her for a few seconds, before he said, "Well, I'm sure glad you think it's hilarious, cause right now I am having a hard time finding any humor in this situation."

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

Doggy Daycare B N' B Style

Doggy Daycare B N' B Style

Chapter Two

3:30 a.m.

The curtains billowed softly from the light spring breeze blowing outside Brennan's bedroom window. The room was bathed in an amber glow from the full moon. She rolled over to look at her clock for what felt like the millionth time that night. Another hour had gone by and Brennan was still unable to sleep.

For some time after she and Booth went to bed, she could hear both Barney and her partner tossing and turning. Barney would occasionally scratch and she could hear him thump, thump, thumping. A few times she had shushed him. He had finally thrown himself down in his crate with a loud sigh.

As she drifted off to sleep she realized the strange noises she had heard were Barney and Booth snoring. The racket was so loud she swore they would be waking the neighbors soon. _Well, isn't that just special at least two of _us_ are sleeping tonight. _With a disgruntled huff, she fluffed up her pillow, and lay down.

4 a.m.

Slurp, slurp, slurp…. Booth's tired brain wondered, _what's that?_ He rolled over, trying to ignore the sound. Slurp…slurp…slurp _what the heck is that? Right the dog._ He managed to mumble, "Barney, knock it off, you're driving me nuts." He heard Barney get up and throw himself down. _Thank God, he's going to be quiet _he thought. A few minutes later he heard, Slurp…slurp…slurp…he jumped up and flipped the light switch on as he said, "_What _are you doing dog?" For heaven's sakes, stop licking your feet. You're supposed to be sleeping." he whispered angrily trying not to wake Bones.

"Oh, don't look at me like that. I'm not playing games with you, its four o'clock in the morning dude," he said in exasperation.

Barney just sat there, leaning on one hip, those ears still crossing one over the other, and his bright orange eyebrows bobbing up and down as he watched his Uncle Booth talking to him. His tongue slowly slid out of his mouth as he began to pant softly. He twisted his head from one side to the other as if to say, _Well, that's just too bad as I'm up now so that means you should be too._

"Look Bud, I'm not happy with that stunt you pulled last night. My nose is killing me. Thanks a lot for ruining my moment with Bones." _Good grief, since when do I have a conversation with a dog, _he wondered.

"I'd really appreciate it if you would let me sleep until eight o'clock, Bud," he told the dog as he reached up to turn the light off.

His feet were hanging over the arm of the couch and he found himself wishing it could be made into a bed. With a frustrated sigh, he pulled the blanket back up over his shoulders and tried to find a more comfortable position. _This was going to be one very long weekend._

Within seconds man and dog were again sound asleep.

5:45 a.m.

Brennan was pulled from sleep by the sounds of a dog beginning to whine. _Oh, my God! Russ said Barney howls occasionally. _She bolted upright in bed, quickly pulling on her robe and slippers. She had to hurry or Barney would wake up Booth.

Suddenly the living room erupted in a loud mournful howl as Barney began to howl like a hound dog, Arrrrrohhh, Arrrrooohhhh! Shoot she was too late. She quickly darted out into the living room whispering in a loud voice "Shh, Barney!"

"_What! I'm up!! _Booth jumped up and turned the light on again, this time with gun drawn, wearing nothing but his boxers and hollering, "FBI, show yourself, now!"

He scanned the room looking for an intruder and wondering what had set the dog off into a fit of howling. "Barney, _shut up! _He bellowed.

They could hear sirens wailing in the distance, slowly getting closer and closer to the apartment.

Brennan quickly ran up to the dogs crate and opened the door to make sure he was actually awake. "Barney, its okay," she soothed. "It's just a siren." He reached up and licked her hand as she shut the door.

The light on the end table lit the room in a soft amber glow, illuminating his partners face, enabling him to see that she had the beginnings of a black eye.

"I'm so sorry Booth; I forgot to tell you that he might start to howl in the middle of the night. Russ and Amy told me he howls when the sirens go off. Sometimes he even howls in his sleep. If he keeps this up, I might get thrown out of my apartment," she said as she stifled a yawn.

"Yeah, I figured when I heard the siren, that was probably why he started howling," he said as he took a closer look at her face in the light from the lamp. "Gee, Bones have you looked in the mirror since we went to bed last night?" he asked with concern.

"Why, what's wrong?" she asked as she reached up to touch her face. She winced as she touched her right cheekbone just below her eye. "Ow that hurts!" she whined. "You didn't give me a black eye did you, Booth? She demanded.

"What? Why are you blaming me for your black eye?" He asked. "It's not my fault the dog freaked out when we were wrestling around last night. If you had put him away to begin with, none of that would have happened! That's what happens when you think you know everything," he added with a smirk.

Brennan went into the bathroom, and looked in the mirror as she assessed the damage. _That's just great, what are people going to think when they see Booth and I looking like this? Here I am with a black eye and his nose is still swollen and black and blue. Oh, my God what if they think we got in some kind of domestic fight? Where did that idea come from _she wondered. _Crap, well Angela will just have a field day with this new development._

She leaned closer to the mirror. Booth appeared in the doorway watching her inspect the fresh bruise. She was leaning across the bathroom counter, her robe had fallen open exposing her chest and the top half of her breasts. Her skimpy nightgown was leaving little to the imagination. He stepped the rest of the way into the tiny room and engulfed her in his presence. She shivered and wasn't sure if it was due to the chill in the early morning air or his nearness. He reached out and touched her chin, turning her face towards him for a closer look.

"Yep, I hate to tell you this Bones, but you've got one heck of a shiner. One any guy would be proud of. Now you can brag you should see the other guy." He said with a husky laugh. He leaned a little closer and just barely grazed his lips over her right eye as it fluttered closed, and she let out a breathless sigh.

"See, I knew a kiss would make it all better." He murmured as he turned and walked back out into the living room.

It took her several minutes before she made another appearance in the living room. Booth was back on the couch, covered with the blanket. Barney, thank goodness had settled down, and was finally sleeping. She quietly left the room and went back to bed. As she closed her eyes she reached up and lightly touched her eye remembering the feather light touch of Booth's kiss. She was asleep in seconds.

8 a.m.

The early morning sunlight was streaming through the curtains in the living room, landing squarely in Booth's and Barney's faces. Barney began to fuss. After the first few whines went unanswered he let out an obnoxious yap.

"Alright Barney, give me a minute and I'll take you out," Booth grumbled on his way to the bathroom.

By the time he came out of the bathroom Brennan had Barney's leash. "If you take him out, I'll fix the coffee," she said as she handed the lead to him. "When he's done, you guys can play fetch with Mr. Frog." she said as she quickly snuck the frog into Booth's jacket pocket when Barney wasn't looking.

"I'd keep him out there for at least fifteen to twenty minutes before you come back in. He should be ready to eat his breakfast by then," she said on her way into the kitchen.

9:15 a.m.

Brennan had been busy while Booth and Barney were out for their morning walk. She went next door to Mrs. Winters, and asked if she could borrow a couple of eggs. She wanted to make Belgian waffles for Booth. She planned to top them with three varieties of fresh berries and cool whip. She quickly whipped up a batch of her favorite vegan crepes that she planned to fill with fresh sugar glazed strawberries and whipped cream.

When Barney and Booth walked into the apartment they were met with the smell of fresh coffee, Belgian waffles and something sweet. Barney looked up at Booth and licked his chops, and began to whine softly. "Sorry 'bout that Bud, whatever Bones is fixing, smells too good to share," he told the dog with a smile on his lips. "Let's see what she has for you to eat."

Brennan knew when the two returned as she could hear Barney whining. As the two made their way toward the kitchen Brennan called out to Booth, "I filled his dish it's on the washer in the laundry room. Please feed him by the back door."

"Will do," he said as he changed directions and headed towards the laundry room. Booth found the food and asked Barney to sit and stay before putting it down for him. He was amazed that he waited for him to say "Okay," before he began to eat. "Good boy." he said as he bent down and scratched him behind the ears.

Booth made his way back to the kitchen. He was beginning to feel a lot like Barney as his mouth was beginning to water from the delicious aromas wafting out into the rest of the apartment.

"So Bones, what's for breakfast?" he inquired. "Something sure smells awfully good. I'm not sure who was salivating more, me or the dog," he said with a laugh. I sure could use that coffee you promised me," he complained.

"Here," she said as she handed him his coffee. "Breakfast is ready now." She turned back to the stove and finished dishing up their plates before carrying them out to the dining room.

"You had time to do all of this while I was out with the dog?" Booth said in amazement as he followed her into the dining room. The table was set with a delicate white lace table cloth, fine china, crystal glasses, and a set of silver filigree candles that she had lit. Booth pulled the chair out waiting for her to sit down before seating himself.

"Really, there was nothing to it. My father, Russ, Amy and the girls were here for dinner on Wednesday. Most everything for the table was already set up," she informed him with a bright smile. "We had a really nice time."

"I'm glad you and your family are beginning to bond. I was worried you might not be able to handle all of this at once. It's nice to see you making a connection with your father and Russ."

"I know I wasn't sure for awhile if I would ever be able to forgive my Dad. There are still a lot of things we need to talk about but we agreed to take it slow."

"I can't understand why you think you need to have someone teach you how to cook. These are the best Belgian Waffles ever!" he said, licking his lips in enthusiasm. "I think you're doing just fine on your own." he added as he continued to rave about her cooking. "Where did you get the recipe? My mom used to make them for me and my brother Jared. Yours are even better than hers."

"I don't know where the recipe came from originally. I remembered when you took Barney out for his morning walk that my mom used to fix them every Sunday for Russ and my dad. They loved them. When Russ got to be a teenager she had to double the recipe because there was never enough for both of them if she didn't." she said with a laugh.

"I'm glad you like them," she murmured with a smile. She was secretly pleased that he was so impressed with her cooking abilities. She had only ever cooked one meal for him, her now infamous Mac and Cheese.

"So, what are your plans for the rest of the weekend?" her partner inquired. "Are we doing anything special?"

"No, I was going to catch up on some household chores, finish reading one of my anthropology magazines, maybe write some more on my new book. That was before we got stuck with Barney for the weekend. Since he's here, I guess we should take him to the park to get some exercise. I'll work on his obedience lessons; he needs to learn to mind, with and without distractions. Why, was there something special you planned on doing this weekend?" she asked him with an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry if we ruined your plans, Booth."

"No you didn't. Maybe watch a game on TV. We've been so busy working lately I'm not sure who's playing. The park sounds fun. I'm sure Barney would enjoy a game of fetch. Does he know what a Frisbee is?"

"Yes, Booth he knows what a Frisbee is. He likes them. He also loves his ball and that darn frog he carries around all the time." She said with a smile as she picked up another forkful of her strawberry crepes.

Booth was watching her eat, and couldn't help the small grin that split his lips when she totally missed getting the forkful of food into her mouth. Somehow she managed to smear some on her right cheek and the rest was slowly dripping down her chin.

"Eat much, Bones?" he asked with a chuckle.

"Shoot." She murmured her cheeks turning pink with embarrassment. "I can't believe I just did that." She tried licking it off. However, she was unable to get it all.

"Here, Bones, allow me," Booth said as he got up and leaned over her. He took his thumb and gently wiped her chin before sticking his thumb in his mouth to suck the strawberry and whipped cream glaze. "Mmm, good." He moaned. Brennan's eyes opened wide watching her partner, her tongue darted out in anticipation.

He reached up and very gently stroked her cheek and around her now black and blue eye. "I'm sorry about your eye Bones, I didn't mean to hurt you." He leaned forward and just barely grazed his lips over the tender skin, then slowly trailed gentle kisses down her cheek to her mouth.

"Booth, wait…she began. She reached up to touch his face and he took her hand and used her thumb to wipe the rest of the strawberry glaze off of her cheek. He brought her thumb to his mouth and gently sucked the syrup from her thumb. She groaned in pleasure. Her body flushed with heat, her breathing increased.

Booth turned and wiped a finger across her plate picking up more of the strawberry glaze; he brought it to her lips and gently spread the glaze over them. Brennan's tongue darted out to lick his finger but he quickly pulled his hand away. Instead he leaned in a little closer, his tongue darting out to lick the syrup from her lips. First he traced her bottom lip, gently sucking to get more of the sweet berry flavor, then up and around her top lip.

_Oh my God, this is so hot, he tastes so good! _ Brennan thought. Who would have thought that Seeley Booth, strawberries and whipped cream would taste like heaven?

By now both of them were groaning in pleasure, his hands around her waist, stroking up her back, her arms around his neck, pulling him closer to her. Finally she yanked him in for a full blown kiss, tongues dueling, and their breath coming in quick pants.

_I'm kissing Bones! She's kissing me back! God is she kissing me, she tastes delectable. _Booth moaned in pleasure. He continued to stroke his tongue with hers, both of them unable to get enough.

"Booth…Booth…"So, I take it this means you really must like my cooking?" she asked between kisses.

"Like it? I'd like to be alone with it!" he moaned. _Oh, God did I really just say I'd like to be alone with her cooking? You're an idiot Seeley._ "Um…yeah…I meant I'd like to be alone with you and you're cooking." He said with a laugh.

They continued to kiss, both so into each other they had totally forgotten about Barney. He had finished eating and began looking around the laundry room. He noticed Brennan's clothes basket full of dirty clothes waiting to be washed sitting on the laundry room floor. He began sniffing the dirty clothes in the basket when a red satin and black lace item caught his interest. He came prancing into the dining room ready to show off his new treasure.

Barney stood watching them kissing for several minutes. _What's this, they are all over each other laughing, touching and stroking each other?_ He sat down with his prize still in his mouth, tail wagging slowly, his head turning from side to side, he whined softly trying to get their attention. _Well, that didn't work. What do you do when no ones paying attention to you? Well, of course you just jump right in and join the fun._

Brennan thought she had heard something, but decided it must have been her and Booth making noises. She ignored the sound. Suddenly Barney launched himself into her lap, shoving his nose between her and Booth. He began licking them both feverishly. In the process he managed to send them all crashing to the floor in a tangled heap.

"Barney, stop, oh God that tickles!" Brennan squealed. "Get, off!"

"Bones, are you okay?" Booth asked. He was afraid when the dog knocked them to the floor that he had crushed her, since he had no clue Barney was even in the room with them. He was trying to get up off of the floor and pull his partner up with him. Barney continued climbing all over both of them, wagging his tail, panting and licking them.

"Barney! Enough!" Booth commanded. To both their amazement, Barney turned and walked away, however he hadn't gone far before they noticed he had picked something up off of the floor and was bringing it to them.

"What do you have, boy?" Booth asked.

Brennan's eyes were beginning to bug out of her head as soon as she realized what he had in his mouth. _Oh my God, you didn't…Barney. NO! _She screamed in her head.

"Drop it, Barney." Booth ordered. He promptly opened his mouth and out dropped a pair of his partners satin and lace underwear.

Booth swallowed hard, face beet red as he turned to Brennan and mumbled "I…um...think these are yours." He said as he picked them up and began to hand them to her.

Brennan jumped up, her face flaming with embarrassment; she yanked the underwear away from her partner. "Booth, why didn't you pick the laundry basket up off the floor when you fed him earlier? If you had he wouldn't be carrying around my dirty clothes," she complained.

"Wait…why are…now you're blaming me for the dog being in your dirty clothes? You knew they were in there and obviously you knew he liked to play in them, so why didn't you put them in the washer?" He demanded.

"Fine, it's my fault!" she grumbled as she stomped off to the laundry room in a huff. _Russ and Emma so owe me, _she vowed to herself. She glanced down at her watch, counting the hours before Barney went home.

Booth was standing with his hands on his hips and tapping his foot. He was glaring down at Barney sitting there looking at him with his head turned to the side, those bright orange eye brows slowly moving up and down. "What's with you?" he asked the dog as he glanced at his watch. "Twice in less than twelve hours. Way to go dude, your timing is unbelievable! You sure know how to ruin the mood!" he fumed.

11 a.m.

"Bones, you ready to go?" Booth hollered.

"Yeah, we're coming," she replied as she came into the living room with Barney at her side. Booth had taken Barney's crate out to the SUV so they could safely take him to the park.

"Did you remember to bring the bag with all his toys and treats? How about his bowl and a gallon of bottled water since it's supposed to be warm today?" she asked.

"Yep, everything's in the car. Let's go." He said as he gently guided her and the dog out the door. "If we don't hurry up all the good spots are going to be taken. Would you believe the weatherman even promised we wouldn't have rain today?"

"That would be nice," she said as they continued walking to the car.

They finally arrived at Rock Creek Park, and began looking for a good spot to camp out for the next several hours. Booth soon asked "This spot look okay to you Bones?" He had picked an area not far from the barbeque pits, under the shade of several oak and pine trees. There were also a number of daffodils, crocus, and hyacinths blooming nearby. Many of the other trees in the area were still blooming, so there were lots of bright spring colors and the smell of fresh flowers in the air.

"Yes, this is perfect. The dog area is right here. Oh, look there is even an area fenced in on three sides, so hopefully Barney won't get away when we're working on his obedience lessons," she said as she began helping Booth unpack all the things they had brought.

By the time they finally finished organizing their little area, several groups of young teenagers and families had begun to arrive. A number of them were beginning to set-up the picnic tables with food, paper plates, napkins and drinks. Before long a few people were barbequing hamburgers and hot dogs.

"You ready to go for a walk and then maybe start throwing the ball and Frisbee for Barney? Booth asked his partner as he reached in the bag looking for the dog's toys.

"Yes, if we wait any longer there will be too many people here."

The three of them began a slow walk around the area. They hadn't gone very far when a large group of children approached them. They were raving about how cute Barney was with his high set ears. Several of the young boys offered to throw the ball or Frisbee for Barney. For close to an hour everyone took turns throwing the toys for the dog. Occasionally they would stop and take a break so everyone could catch their breaths and grab a drink.

Barney was very good with the children he had no problems giving everyone tons of sloppy wet kisses. He in turn was rewarded with lots of petting and scratching which he thoroughly enjoyed, so much so that several times he had rolled over on his back, and was scratching his legs in the air because it felt so good.

Eventually they had to tell everyone that Barney needed to go work on his obedience lessons for a while. Brennan took him to the fenced in area and began working him on leash while Booth stood outside the entryway watching.

They continued practicing for about ten minutes before Brennan said, "Booth, would you do me a favor and call out some commands for me? I need you to ask us to go forward, halt, right turn, left turn, slow, fast and about face."

"Sure, he looks like he is really getting the hang of this," he said with a note of surprise in his voice.

"He is really being good despite all the kids, people and confusion going on." She added with pride.

For the next ten minutes Booth gave out commands for Brennan and Barney to follow. He was pleased to see that the two of them had developed a good rapport as the dog was watching her intently so he wouldn't miss the next exercise. Only a couple of times did his partner have to reach down and straighten a sit or use her thumb and index finger to pinch Barney's hips to get him to complete the sit.

Brennan took the regular leash off of Barney and connected a shorter one to his collar. "Booth, I need you to stand in the doorway just in case he decides to make a run for it. I left the shorter leash on him so he thinks he is totally off-leash but we at least have something to grab hold of besides his collar if he tries to get away," she explained.

She brought the dog to the center of the enclosure, put him in the sit position again, asked him to stay and then walked about six feet away from him. She then turned around and faced him. She waited for about twenty seconds and called him. He came running, right away, sat in front of her, his body quivering in excitement, his pink tongue hanging out.

"Barney, Heel." Again he returned to her left side and sat perfectly. "Oh, you are so good!" Brennan exclaimed to him as she patted him.

"Okay, let's do one more and then we'll call it quits," she informed the dog. She put him in the sit position, asked him to stay and increased the distance to twelve feet. She noticed as she turned back to the dog that they had drawn quite a large crowd of on-lookers. She was really surprised that so many people were watching her put Barney through his routine. Several people were standing there with food and she thought to herself, _well this is going to be a good way to see if he will follow through on his recall. _

He was halfway to her when he suddenly made an abrupt right turn and headed for the fence. To Brennan's utter amazement Barney sailed over the four foot high fence. He ran straight up to a five-year-old little girl wearing a pink polka dotted spring dress with curly brown hair. He stuck his long pointy nose right in her face and then gently licked her cheek, as she squealed "Eww!" and wiped her face off with the back of her hand. She laughed and said "Doggie!" He promptly grabbed her hot dog right out of her hand, and as she began to squeal in shock he turned around, sailed back over the fence and ran straight to Brennan. He immediately returned to the heel position and sat down, looking up at her with the hot dog still hanging out of his mouth.

Everyone stood in shock for a good ten seconds before several people began to laugh hysterically and began pointing at Brennan and Barney. The dog was still sitting in the heel position, tail wagging, ears pricked, head cocked to the side, those big brown eyes and bright orange eyebrows doing a little happy dance.

Brennan stood with her mouth hanging open and for the first time in her life she found herself speechless and nearly dying of embarrassment. Her face was bright red, and she glanced over at Booth who was now rolling on the ground laughing. She gave him a dirty look and was about to say something to him when she realized that the entire peanut gallery was now laughing and rolling around on the ground.

"Booth, stop laughing! This isn't funny! Barney's not supposed to jump the fence and steal a hot dog from that poor little girl." Brennan stood with her hands on her hips, stomping her foot in frustration as she fumed at her partner.

"I'm sorry, Bones," he managed to gasp. He had tears in his eyes and was holding his sides as they were beginning to hurt, from laughing so hard. "Oh God, I can't help it you should have seen the look on your face when he stole that little girls hot dog, then he jumped back over the fence and returned to you still holding his prize!"

"Oh my God, Bones, he still hasn't eaten it yet. You have to let him eat it. He did come back to you. He even sat at your side. That is what you wanted him to do, right?"

Brennan looked down into Barney's black and tan face, with those deep chocolate brown eyes so like her partners. She had never seen a dog have such an expressive face from his eye brow markings alone. His tail had begun to wag slowly back and forth, his head once again twisting from side to side as he looked up at her. His mouth had begun to water, and he now had a long stringy drool running down his chest and front leg. He was still holding the hot dog waiting for her to tell him it was okay to eat his treat. She could see him swallowing in anticipation.

Just then everyone sitting along the sidelines in the peanut gallery, as she had privately called them, began to chant, "Let him eat it! Let him eat it!" They began to whoop and holler with their fists in the air, "BAR…NEY! BAR…NEY!"

Brennan looked over at the now chanting and cheering crowd and rolled her eyes. She looked at Barney again, and couldn't help but smile. He was wiggling all over now and beginning to whine. When he lifted his front paw and placed it on her leg, with those brown eyes begging her to let him eat his reward, she finally gave in.

She reached down, extended her hand out to his muzzle and asked him to "Drop it." He did and the crowd behind her began shouting "Boo!" She jerked her head up and with a finger to her mouth she gave a "shhh" motion to the crowd. To her surprise everyone stopped hollering and jumping around. She returned her attention to the dog and asked him to heel. He followed her as she walked towards the fence. Once they reached the barrier Brennan stopped and Barney sat, his eyes glued to her and the hot dog she was still carrying.

"Hello, sweetheart, I'm sorry my puppy stole your hot dog. I can't believe he did that," she said with a smile as she bent down to eye level with the little girl. "What's your name?"

The little girl looked down and whispered shyly, "Allie."

"Allie, since Barney was a bad boy when he stole your hot dog, do you think he still deserves to get a treat anyway?" Brennan asked her quietly.

Allie turned away and tried to hide behind her older brother. He reached down and whispered to her. "It's okay, you can answer her." The little girl looked down at her feet and shrugged her shoulders as she murmured "I dun no."

Booth had finally pulled himself together and walked over to the rest of the crowd. He bent down to talk to little Allie. "Honey, I think it would be okay to let Barney have his hot dog. Would you like to shake hands with Barney?"

Allie looked up at him with her pretty blue eyes sparkling in wonder and asked "Can I pet him, too?"

"Sure why don't you come inside the fence. You can pet him and then ask him to shake your hand. After he shakes your hand, then you can give him the hot dog." Brennan said.

Brennan met Allie and her brother halfway and asked Barney to sit. "Allie, I want you to hold your hand out like this." She said as she showed her how to hold her hand, with the back of your hand facing the dog's nose.

The little girl held her hand out to him. Barney began to gently lick her hand. "Oh, that tickles!"

Booth leaned down and whispered to Allie, "Tell him to shake sweetie."

Allie commanded, "Barney shake." He promptly picked up his right paw and Allie reached out to grab it and pumped her arm up and down a couple of times. "He did it!" she said as she looked at her brother, Booth, and Brennan; her little body shaking in excitement. "Can I give him some of my hot dog now?" she asked shyly.

"Sure Allie," hold your hand out flat just like this. Allie held her little hand out and Brennan set a small piece of hot dog in the palm of her hand. "Barney wait." she said as she put the little girls hand in front of Barney and whispered in her ear "Tell him easy. And then okay. Then you can let him eat it." Allie did and Barney's tongue snaked out and very gently snagged the piece of hot dog off of her hand. The peanut gallery erupted in loud cheers.

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

Doggy Daycare B N' B Style

**A/N I forgot to mention when I sent chapter two the other day that I had edited/rewritten chapter one of this story. So if anyone read it before and would like to read it again and let me know if it tells a much better and uncluttered story then the first draft I would appreciate very much. I am working on chapter four and hope to have it posted fairly soon. It looks like I might get five chapters out of this story before it is complete. Thanks so much everyone who has been reading and reviewing my stories so far. This story has 20 people so far listed on my story/new chapter alert list. :) For a first time writer and having only ever written three stories in my lifetime this made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. :) This from someone who hated English when I was in high school and never was able to write a very good creative writing story. So much so that the ones I am sure I did write I couldn't tell you today what they would have been about. :) Enough of my ramblings for now, please read and review if something in this chapter really made you feel any of your five senses and made you feel that you were there with B/B & A/H. :) Sorry if some of you get this story alert twice, hopefully this time chapter three will be added to the original story and not as a brand new one. :)**

Doggy Daycare B N' B Style

Chapter Three

6 p.m.

By the time they said goodbye to Allie and her family and packed up all their gear it was time for dinner. They had just gotten on the road when Brennan's cell phone began to ring. She answered, "Brennan."

"Sweetie, where have you been? I've been trying to get in touch with you all day," Angela complained.

"Hi, Angela, I'm sorry. I was just checking my messages. We took Barney to Rock Creek Park this morning. We've been there since 11:30," she explained.

"Who's Barney?" Angela asked confused.

"Ange, don't tell me you forgot about Emma and Haley's black and tan German Shepherd puppy already?" she asked with a sigh. "We're dog sitting until sometime tomorrow," she informed her friend.

"What…Wait, who's we? You mean Booth is helping you dog sit Barney?" Angela asked in shock. Under her breath she added, "Oh, what I wouldn't give to be a fly on the wall." _This is going to work out better than I thought_.

"Russ stopped by the lab last night after you and Jack left. Amy's parents were involved in a car accident. They're going to be okay, just needed to stay in the hospital a day or two," she explained. "Yes, Angela, Booth agreed to help me dog sit. What's so shocking about that?"

Booth glanced over at Brennan for a second as he continued driving, a frown marring his face as he said loud enough for Angela to hear, "Actually, that isn't totally true, you blackmailed me into helping you dog sit."

"Shhh!" Brennan said with her hand over the cell phones mouth piece as she slapped him on the arm.

"Ow! What did you do that for?" Booth whined as he rubbed his arm.

Brennan just glared at him as she listened to Angela talking on the phone.

Angela could still hear what was being said although she neglected to tell her friend that. She covered the mouthpiece on her phone and told Jack with a gleeful smile, "This is perfect, they're already together. I couldn't have planned this better if I'd tried."

Jack just grinned at her and said, "I sure hope you know what your doing honey, I wouldn't want this to backfire on you."

Angela just waved him off and asked Brennan, "Did you get my message about us having dinner at your place tonight?"

"Yes. I was just about to call and tell you we'd meet you at seven. We're on our way home."

7 p.m.

Ding, dong.

"I'll get it," Booth called out as he walked to Brennan's door and looked through the peephole. Jack and Angela stood on the porch holding several take out bags with Sid's written on the side. He opened the door to let them in and Barney came running towards them and promptly stuffed his nose in Jack's groin. "Hey! Dude, watch out for the family jewels!" Jack admonished as he reached down to push him away.

As Jack leaned towards Barney, the dog got a big whiff of the food. His nose began to wiggle and he began making snorkeling noises, as he tried to poke his nose into the take out bags. Jack lifted the food out of Barney's reach and said, "Sorry, not for you, bud."

Angela walked around Jack on her way to the kitchen. Before she had taken more than a couple of steps Barney goosed her with his long pointy nose. She let out a shriek and burst into laughter. "Oh, you must be Barney. You're just so cute!" she gushed as she bent down to pet him. His tail began beating back and forth so fast he caused some of Brennan's mail to fly off the table onto the floor.

"Barney, that's enough. Come." Booth commanded as he grabbed him by the collar to keep him off of Jack and Angela. He bent down to pick up the mail and other items the puppy had knocked on the floor.

Jack suddenly realized that Booth's nose was swollen and black and blue. "Dude, what happened to your nose?"

Angela gasped when she saw Booth's nose. Just then Brennan walked into the entryway to see what was keeping everyone when Angela noticed her black eye and with a startled gasp she asked, "What the hell have you two been doing since we saw you yesterday? Booth, what did you do her?" she demanded angrily.

"Umm…I…We…" he swallowed nervously, his eyes looking everywhere but at Angela's.

"What Booth is trying to say, Angela, is we had a little accident. Which was caused by yours truly," she said as she pointed to Barney. He was sitting on one hip, ears pricked forward, panting with his tan eyebrows bobbing up and down and his head twisting from one side to the other watching them.

"How did he manage to cause this?" Angela asked in confusion as she reached up to pull Brennan's face towards her for a closer look at her eye.

"Well, umm…we were, umm…sort of rolling around on the floor and…" Booth mumbled his face flushed in embarrassment.

"Booth, I'm sure they don't want to hear about that now. Let's eat." Brennan said as she ushered everyone towards the dining room, Barney padding along behind them.

Angela was squealing with glee in her head. _Oh, my God, did he say they were rolling around on the floor?! Right and these two keep insisting 'we're just partners'! I bet they were doing the midnight tango! _She glanced over at Jack and mouthed, "Just partners my ass. You know what they were doing, don't you?"

Jack winked at her and nodded his head. "We'll talk about it later, honey." He whispered to her.

Brennan and Angela took the food into the dining room and began to dish up everyone's plates.

"We met the cutest little girl at the park. Her name is Allie." Brennan said. "Barney was being so good when I was working him on-leash; I thought I could trust him when I took him off-leash to come when I called him. Unfortunately, I was wrong." she sighed.

Booth began to laugh and said, "You should have been there," he began as he reached down and patted Barney on the head. "He jumped the fence in the middle of his recall and stole the poor girl's hot dog right out of her hand. She's the cutest little thing, five-years-old, blue eyes and curly chestnut hair. You know, if I didn't know better I could have sworn she was Bones' daughter, same attitude and same pretty blue eyes."

Brennan's head snapped up as she said, "Why would you think Allie looked like me? That doesn't even make sense. Besides it's not even medically possi…"

"I know Bones, you're never having any kids. I get it. Remember, I did see some of your childhood photos and I saw something in Allie that reminded me of you at her age." Booth explained.

Suddenly Barney jumped up and stuck his nose on the edge of the table waiting for someone to toss him some food. He began to whine and wag his tail back and forth. He was looking at everyone with the most pathetic look on his face. _Hey man, what about me? Don't I get any? Please, please can I have some?_

"Barney..." Brennan warned. "No begging."

_Fine, if I can't have any, neither will you. Hmm, let's see how you like this? _Barney reached up and grabbed a mouthful of the tablecloth and started to walk backwards pulling the cloth with him. Suddenly all the food, dishes, and glasses began moving across the table. Jack and Booth grabbed their plates and everyone began hollering, "Barney! Noooo!"

Brennan jumped up and grabbed him by the collar and pulled him over to his dog bed. She gave him the hand signal and commanded, "Down, Barney." He lay down and began to pant softly. She put her hand in front of his nose and said, "Stay."

Brennan returned to the table as they all began to pull the tablecloth back on the table properly. Angela was rearranging all of their plates so they could finish eating.

"Where was I?" Booth said. "Oh, right I wish I had taken the video camera with us as we probably could win the 10,000 prize on America's Funniest Home Video or whatever they call that show now. The look on Bones's face was priceless." he laughed.

"Booth, I really didn't think he was that funny," Brennan added in a huff.

"Well, all I know is for someone who says she's socially inept; you should have seen her working those kids and the crowd of onlookers. She even went and talked to Allie's parents and made a tentative play date for Emma and Haley with little Allie and Barney." Booth said with pride.

"You mean all of our hard work has finally paid off and she's beginning to interact with society?" Angela asked with a wink at Booth.

"Yep, I was so proud of or our girl today. I didn't even have to go and apologize to anyone for her."

Brennan began to squirm with embarrassment and a little bit of annoyance, "Gee, it's so nice to know you all have such confidence in my ability to interact with the human race on a daily basis." She grumbled defensively.

"I'd say the best part was when the crowd of onlookers began to turn against Bones when they thought she wouldn't let Barney eat the hot dog he stole. They all began doing the Jerry Springer chant, 'Let him eat it!" Then they started yelling BAR…NEY!"

"I don't know what that means? Who's Jerry Sprig?" Bones asked with a puzzled look.

"No, it's Springer, honey" Angela said between a fit of laughter.

"Oh my God! Seriously, Dr. Brennan, you don't know who Jerry Springer is?" Jack asked in shock. He shook his head in dismay and added, "We've got to do something about getting you a TV with a DVD player."

Booth, Jack, and Angela looked at each other, laughed and rolled their eyes in amusement. They all knew their friend and co-worker was totally hopeless.

"So Bones, did anything exciting happen when your family came over on Wednesday?" Booth asked with a secretive look.

Brennan looked at her partner and said, "I already told you about that."

"I know but I thought you might want to tell Angela and Jack."

"I already know, Booth. Did she tell you about the surprise _present_shereceived from Max and Russ?" Angela asked with a grin.

"Noooo…Why? What did they get for you, Bones?" he asked as he leaned back in his chair with a smile and wiggled one eyebrow. He had a pretty good idea what the surprise was, but he wanted to hear it from her lips.

"I think it will be better if I just show you," she said as she got up and walked around the table. She reached down and took his hand to pull him out of the chair. She motioned to Angela and Jack to follow them as they walked down the hall into the den.

She opened the door to her den and flipped the light on. As she did the curtains on the far wall parted revealing a huge theater size movie screen that took up the entire wall. She flipped another switch and a baseball game appeared on the screen. The rest of the room was filled with reclining seats and end tables to hold beverages and other snacks. On the other wall was a complete entertainment center with a DVD/VCR, and CD player. There were several shelves full of Disney movies especially for Russ and Amy's two girls when they came to visit.

"Dude, can you believe it? Wow, and I thought the one I had was huge!" Jack said in amazement.

"Bones, has this been here the whole time I've been here?" Booth asked. His mouth was now hanging open in shock. He knew Max and Russ were going to get a big screen TV for Bones. He had even told them what kind to get since he knew he would be watching the games with them in the future. He was tired of Bones not knowing what he was talking about every time he mentioned a movie or TV show when they were talking.

"Holy crap Bones, that's a theater size movie screen not a TV screen!" he said with glee. "Does it have surround sound, too?" He asked while rubbing his hands together in excitement.

Brennan couldn't believe how much he reminded her of Parker, Emma and Haley at Christmas when they couldn't open their gifts fast enough. "Yes, Booth it has all the bongs and whistles." _That's not right._ _Hmm, that's not the right phrase,_ she thought to herself. "Trust me. I know, as Russ, Dad and I spent hours looking for just the right one." She added with a laugh and huge smile that made those sapphire blue eyes of hers sparkle.

"It's bells and whistles, Bones!" Booth said with a grin as he picked her up and spun her around. "Wow, the kids are gonna love coming to your house for sleepovers."

"Booth, put me down!" Brennan laughed as she put her hands on his shoulders trying to extricate herself from his embrace.

"My God, it feels like you're right there in the middle of the action." Jack said as he watched the game.

Angela cleared her throat to get the guys attention. "Well, sorry to disappoint you but I brought a movie for us to watch. I'm sure everyone but Brennan remembers _The Bodyguard _with Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston?"

"Hmm, I heard of it, but think I was off doing my military service," Booth began, "I don't remember watching it. Sounds like a chick flick to me."

Booth and Jack looked at each other and rolled their eyes as they shrugged their shoulders in resignation. "So much for us watching the game," they groaned in unison.

"Oh, come on you two, you know as well as I do it's not just a chick flick, there's action and suspense." Angela informed them. "Just to prove we aren't totally heartless, you guys can watch part of the game while we clean up the dishes and fix some popcorn."

8 p.m.

"We're back!" Angela announced as she and Brennan returned to the den with the movie. "Here's your popcorn, Jack…Booth."

"Let's get this movie started, Booth. Kevin Costner is so hot! Talk about eye candy!" Angela gushed. "Brennan, let me know if he reminds you of anyone?" she said as she motioned her head towards Booth.

Brennan looked at her friend and said, "Okay…not sure what you mean by that?"

"So, what am I? Chopped liver?" Jack whined.

"Oh, Hodgie, you know I love you." Angela soothed Jack with a passionate kiss. "Can't a girl have a few fantasies?" she whispered huskily in his ear.

"Not if you plan on sharing your fantasies with anyone except me," he said as he leaned in for another kiss.

Booth rolled his eyes, looked over their heads at Brennan and said, "Geez, do you two want to watch this movie or do we need to get you a room for the night? Preferably _not _here."

Just then the movies opening credits began. Everyone settled into their chairs with their popcorn and drinks. Barney had followed them all into the den earlier and was now rolled over on his back laying with all four legs in the air leaning against Booth's chair.

"I don't know why you think Frank should remind me of Booth?" Brennan mumbled under her breath. "Frank is only Secret Service and Booth is a former Army Sniper and now FBI agent."

"Shh, Bones, we can't hear the movie," Booth whispered in exasperation.

"Fine, I'm just saying…"

All three said in unison, "SHHHH!"

Brennan bit her bottom lip trying to bite back a quick retort. Twenty minutes went by before she spoke again. "Okay, I get it now, Frank is a know it all. Rachel's a bit on the stupid side for not following Frank's advice on improving her security issues. "Booth," she whispered, "doesn't Rachel remind you of Caroline Epps?"

"Bones! Please, not now."

Brennan sat back in her chair with a sigh. She popped another piece of popcorn in her mouth to keep from saying anything else.

Ten minutes had barely gone by before Brennan exclaimed loudly, "Oh look, Angela, Frank's getting all 'Secret Service' on his ass! Now _that_ reminds me of Booth."

Brennan asked, "Booth, remember when I asked you to get all FBI on Sheriff Dawes ass when we were in Arizona?"

Booth's face flushed in embarrassment. "Yes, Bones, I remember. Maybe now is not a good time to discuss that? I'm sure Angela and Jack don't want to be reminded of Kirk Persinger right now." Booth said in a hushed voice.

Brennan bent her head down, ashamed of her insensitive comment. "I'm sorry Angela. I'll try to keep my mouth shut for the rest of the movie."

"I know you didn't mean it the way it sounded, Brennan." Apology accepted." Angela said.

Soon everyone's attention returned to the movie. Out of the blue a loud thunderous noise erupted from Booth's chair.

"Dude, what's that noise? Booth, are you awake or did you suddenly fall asleep?" Jack demanded.

"What? No, that's not me! I think its Barney. He's _snoring_!"he exclaimed in surprise. Booth looked down as Brennan flipped a couple of buttons on the all in one remote control. The movie was now on pause and the light on Booth's end table had come on.

"Oh, yeah he's sleeping alright. Check it out; his tongue is sticking out!" Booth reached down and very slowly and quietly pulled on Barney's tongue. Everyone was amazed as Booth continued pulling on his tongue until nearly six inches was hanging out of his mouth.

"Wait…I have to get a picture of this." Jack reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his cell phone. "Dude, this is going to make me 'King of the Lab'! he said in a hushed voice, trying to curb his excitement. "I can't wait till Zack sees this!"

"Did you get the shot?" Booth asked in a hushed voice. "He's waking up. I don't think he is going to let me pull his tongue out anymore."

Barney was indeed waking up. He began licking his chops, watching all of them gawking at him, his bright orange eyebrows giving his face a puzzled expression. _Okay, what the hell just happened? What were they doing to me? Geez, I was sleeping so sound, what did you have to wake me up for?_

"I got it!" Jack exclaimed in triumph. "You wanna see?" He turned the phone around so everyone could see the new photo. They all began laughing hysterically and pointing their fingers at Barney.

Barney got up and shook himself a couple of times. He heaved a loud sigh and sauntered out of the den. He knew when they were making fun of him. He went in search of a drink and some peace and quiet.

Brennan restarted the movie and before long everyone was engrossed in the story playing out on the huge screen in front of them.

A little while later Brennan noticed Angela got up and sat on Jack's lap. She heard her whisper to Jack, "This part always scares me." She put her hands over her eyes and was peaking through her fingers. "I can't watch." Jack wrapped his arms around her and whispered something in her ear Brennan couldn't catch.

Brennan returned her attention back to the movie. Frank was now yelling, "Where's Fletcher?" as he began running down to the boat dock. The young boy was just launching the small boat out into the lake. Frank jumped off the dock and into the boat knocking Fletcher and himself into the pond. Rachel and family were freaking out because Fletcher couldn't swim. Rachel was screaming at Frank asking him if he was crazy. The boat's engine was still running and it was now out in the middle of the pond. Suddenly there was a loud explosion; the boat blew up, causing Brennan and Angela to jump and gasp in shock.

Barney came running in when he heard the girls cry out in fear. _I'm here! I'm here! What's the matter, girls? Did you think the boogeyman was out to get, you?_ Barney wondered. He went to Brennan first and bounced his nose off of her leg until she reached down to pat him on the head.

He went over to check on Angela and Jack. "It's okay. I'm just being silly." Angela soothed as she stroked his ears.

The movie was nearly over, when Brennan realized that Frank was going to sacrifice his own life (by jumping in front of Rachel), just like Booth had done for her when Pam Nunan pulled her gun out at the Checker Box Restaurant during karaoke night. From that point on Brennan was having a hard time following the rest of the movie.

All she could see were Booth and herself and all their friend's reactions during and after when Pam shot Booth at the restaurant that night. Brennan had been so engrossed in singing Cindy Lauper's hit song, 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun' that she had failed to see that Pam was pointing a gun at her. It was plain Pam had every intention of killing her so she could have Booth all to herself.

For as long as she lived Brennan would never forget the sound of the gun going off or the smell of gunpowder that filled the air of the club. With horror she had watched Booth move into Pam's line of fire, essentially risking his own life to protect hers. _Why did he do it? How could he, knowing he could leave Parker without a father?_ Brennan couldn't decide if she was grateful or just plain angry at the choice Booth had made.

Brennan was sure a piece of her heart had shattered and broken into a million pieces when she saw Booth's body recoil from the force of the bullet entering his chest. When he had slowly slumped to the floor, his hand clutching his wound, Brennan dropped to her knees beside him. She had picked his gun up off the floor where he had dropped it, and without a moment's hesitation or remorse, she had calmly taken aim and fired one single fatal shot to Pam's throat.

Only after she was sure Pam was no longer a threat to them was she able to devote her attention to saving Booth. He was no longer just her partner, her best friend, but instead he was now the most important person in her new _family_. Booth had told her that she and he were the _center_ and as long as they _held_ the team would remain fully functional. If Booth left them now, Brennan was not sure she and the team would _hold _without both halves of the _center_.

Hours later, Brennan, now understood why her parents had left her and Russ so long ago. When you truly love someone, you're willing to kill for them or even die for them.

Didn't he know she would rather die than to be the cause of his death? She couldn't live knowing that she would have become responsible for Parker becoming fatherless.

The sound of Rachel yelling he's my _bodyguard_ brought Brennan out of her memories of Booth being shot. She knew she was going to have a full blown panic attack; by now Brennan recognized the signs. Her entire body broke out in a cold sweat and she began to shake uncontrollably. _I have to get out of here!_ Brennan didn't say a word to anyone; she just got up and left.

She walked quickly down the hallway hoping to reach the bathroom before the others noticed her absence. _I made it! Thank God!_ Brennan darted into the bathroom, flipped the light on, and promptly closed and locked the door behind her. She glanced up and saw her reflection in the mirror. Brennan almost didn't recognize the woman looking back at her. Her chestnut hair was disheveled, her face ashen, with little beads of sweat appearing at the temples, and her sapphire blue eyes were as big as saucers.

_No, no, no…I am not going to fall apart. I can't do that! They're all here. What if they hear you? Not now, don't you dare fall apart, Temperance. _She commanded herself.Brennan took a deep shuddering breath, trying to control the violent tremors shaking her body. Once again she looked in the mirror and saw two tears slowly trickling down her cheeks, "Oh, no you are _not _crying! Pull yourself together damn it." Brennan whispered fiercely at her reflection. "I can do it. Everyone knows I'm the Queen of Denial, Compartmentalizing or whatever the hell you want to call it."

She jumped at the light knock on the bathroom door, "Bones, are you okay? Are you in there?" Booth asked as he rattled the door, trying to force his way into the bathroom. "We stopped the movie. I'm so sorry I let Angela talk us into watching it now. I should have remembered that last scene, the one I know caused you to go and lock yourself in here. Please, come out so I can talk to you?" he begged.

"Go away. I don't want to talk to any of you. How _could _you! Why would you let me watch that movie, knowing that was the way it was going to end? How _dare _you all do this to me, after everything we've been through?" she yelled her voice choked with emotion.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

Doggy Daycare B N' B Style

A/N I just wanted to take the time to tell all of you who have been reading this story, leaving reviews or putting it on your story alerts thank you. :) For a very new writer you have no idea how much your encouragement means to me. Thanks so much for letting me know how much you have enjoyed reading this silly, fluffy story. Hopefully I have included enough angst in this chapter to satisfy a few of you that were thinking this was only going to be a happy, happy, happy story. LOL

Doggy Daycare B N' B Style

Chapter Four

9:45 p.m.

The movie was nearly over when Booth realized that the scene now playing was probably going to cause his partner to have a major meltdown.

Booth's stomach dropped to his knees as he watched Frank throw his body in front of Rachel's, knocking her to the floor. As he did so, Frank's former colleague fired two shots at Rachel, in an attempt to kill her as he had been hired to do by Rachel's own sister, Nikki Marron.

Booth's body jerked, mirroring the way it had reacted when Pam Nunan shot him instead of Brennan. He remembered how he had slowly crumbled to the floor in shock. He watched in horror as the blood began pumping between his fingers with each labored beat of his heart. He continued clutching the bullet wound in his chest, while he reached up with his other hand, grabbed Brennan's, and held on as if she was his lifeline.

Booth knew he would never forget the expression on his partners face when she realized he had been shot. Brennan had scooped him up off the floor, screamed and begged for him not to leave her. Not like that. In all their years together as partners, best friends, and colleagues he had never seen her look so terrified. He hoped to God he would never be responsible for causing her such terror and pain again. He couldn't bare it.

Booth knew Brennan wouldn't be able to separate her own real life experience from the one now airing on screen. Despite her constant protests that she knew how to keep every case and emotion compartmentalized in its own little box.

Hell, even he had jumped in shock when he realized what was happening. _Talk about déjà vu!_ He'd be surprised if all four of them didn't have their own PTSD attack soon. Booth couldn't believe he had totally forgotten the ending to this movie.

_Shit, he was going to be in so much trouble when Bones realized he had lied to her about not having seen this movie before. Geez, did Angela really set this whole thing in motion? My God, was she really capable of forcing her best friend to deal with her emotional issues in such a fashion? Didn't she know it was possible she might finally push Bones right over the edge?_

Booth glanced over at Brennan's chair and noticed she was no longer there. _Where the hell did she go? _He quickly scanned the room looking for her. He got up and started walking towards the door. "Did she really walk out; close the door behind her and the three of us didn't even notice she had left the room?" He mumbled to himself. He opened the door to the den, poked his head out into the hallway and called, "Bones…Bones." _That's odd the light in the hallway was no longer on._

Angela heard Booth calling Brennan and looked over Jack's shoulder and asked, "What's wrong, Booth? Why are you calling, Brennan? She's right here…Well, that's odd where did she go? Did she tell you guys she was leaving?"

"No." Both men said in unison.

"Angela, could you stop the movie, please. Can I ask you a question?" Booth asked.

Angela nodded her head. She got up off of Jack's lap and stood up as Booth began walking towards her_. I wonder why he looks so angry. Come on g-man; let's see you get those boxers of yours in a twist. _

"Why did you…What made…Did you pick this movie on purpose? If so, what exactly was the point of forcing your best friend to relive one of the worst moments of hers and my life? Booth demanded as he walked forward so they were now toe to toe and eye to eye. _Let's see how she likes being on the receiving end of one of my getting all 'FBI on her ass' acts!_

"Why, Booth, did I suddenly hit a nerve? Did I or this movie somehow make you uncomfortable?" Angela demanded her face flushed in anticipation of the coming battle of words. "You know what, Brennan might have forgiven you for letting her think for nearly two weeks you were dead, but I've got news for you _buddy,_I'm not buying that crappy cover story. You remember, the one you fed her about Dr. Sweets supposedly being told to let her know you weren't really dead?"

Booths face flushed in anger and he shouted, "Oh for heaven's sakes, we've been over this story already, and I'm sick and tired of having to defend my actions. Remember, I have rules I have to follow. I don't plan on sabotaging my career with the FBI or the Army. When you receive orders from the White House, you don't ask questions. When they tell you this mission is _top secret_ you say, _Yes sir_. Did everyone forget _top secret_ means that _no one is supposed to know?_ Booth yelled as he threw his hands in the air in frustration.

Angela angrily snapped her fingers, waved her hand in a long snake like movement, and said, "Whatever…I just want you to know, Booth, that you'd better not _ever _pull a stunt like this on Brennan again. If you do, I swear I will personally hunt you down and arrange for your next _death_." Angela threatened angrily.

"Booth, you weren't here. You have absolutely no idea how bad your fake death affected Brennan. I almost didn't get her to attend your supposed _funeral_," she said as she made air quotes. "I seriously thought for the first time ever, I might have to have my best friend committed for a psychological evaluation. Do you know how scared I had to have been to even think about suggesting such a thing to Brennan?"

"Oh…" Booth said his face suddenly pale. "I had no idea it was that bad, Angela." Booth suddenly collapsed into one of the chairs. He reached up and brushed his fingers through his hair.

"I swear to you, if I had known that little twerp Sweets wasn't going to tell Bones that I wasn't really dead, I would have found a way to let her know. The FBI and the Army have always told my family/friends what I was really doing or where I was going, so I had no idea that Bones wouldn't be told the truth."

"Angela, I want you to know, Dr. Sweets will never again keep any information, classified or otherwise from, Bones." Booth said. "I informed Sweets that I would _take him out_ if I ever found out he'd pulled another stunt like this again."

Angela reached out her hand and asked, "You want to shake on that?"

"You bet," he said as he got up from the chair. As their eyes met, he took her hand in his and shook it, "I swear to God nothing like that will _ever_ happen again."

"I'm going to hold you to that promise," Angela said as she continued shaking Booth's hand.

Angela dropped her eyes, pretending to look at their two hands joined together. She was secretly doing a little happy dance in her head. _Gotcha! You knight in shining FBI standard issue body armor. Now go find your 'partner' and make everything right again._

"Remember, I'll be watching you from now on." Angela warned him.

"I guess I'd better find Bones," Booth said as he turned and walked out of the room. He went down the hall and out into the living room, no Brennan. He wondered if she had taken Barney out for his evening walk. No, the dogs leash was still hanging on the wall hook in the laundry room. Okay, now this was beginning to get a little weird. No Brennan. Come to think of it where was Barney? He hadn't seen the dog since he had pulled the poor pups tongue nearly all the way out of his mouth earlier this evening.

Booth left the laundry room, walked out into the kitchen and down the hall towards the rooms on the other side of the apartment. No light on in the hallway here either. Most of the doors were closed and no lights could be seen under them, except the bathroom. _Found you. _He could see the light shining under the door.

Booth put his ear to the door and listened for any sounds from within. He didn't hear anything. "Bones, are you in there?" Are you okay?" Booth rattled the door, trying to force his way into the bathroom. "We stopped the movie. I'm sorry I let Angela talk us into watching it tonight. I should have remembered that last scene. I know that's why you've locked yourself in here. Bones please come out. I need to talk to you," he begged.

"Go away. I don't want to talk to any of you. How _could _you! Why would you let me watch that movie, knowing that was the way it was going to end? How _dare _you all do this to me, after everything we've been through?" she yelled, her voice choked with emotion.

"Bones come out. We really need to talk about this. I need to know you're okay. I can't tell that through a closed door." Booth said. With a loud sigh he began running his fingers through his hair in frustration. _Great, now what are you going to do Seeley? _

"What makes you think I want to talk to you?" Brennan demanded angrily. "I don't have anything to say to you. Just leave me alone."

"Brennan, don't make me kick this door in. I don't want to. But I swear, if you don't come out, I will," Booth threatened.

"If you kick this door in I'll send you the repair bill," Brennan snapped at him.

He could here the sound of water running, then silence. Soon he could hear rustling sounds and then what sounded like Brennan blowing her nose. "Bones…"

"Booth, what did you say earlier? Something about that last scene…You should have remembered that…What does that mean?" Brennan asked in confusion.

For several minutes Brennan heard nothing but silence. Booth cleared his throat, and rubbed his now sweating palms on his jeans. Brennan could hear him mumbling, but couldn't understand the words. "I…Um…I…What was the question, Bones?"

'Booth, you're telling me that you _knew _that Frank was going to get _shot?_ You knew that?! Why…why…What the hell is wrong with you? Did you get some, sick perverted thrill out of watching me relive that night at the Checker Box?" Brennan screamed at him.

Booth dropped his head in shame and felt his face flush in anger. _Shit! I'm busted. Now what are you going to tell her, Seeley? You're an insensitive, uncaring jerk?_

"No, no…I know you won't believe this. I watched this movie once, probably fifteen years ago. I honestly didn't remember that scene. Not until it was too late," he tried to explain.

"Right and you really think I'm going to believe that?" Brennan demanded angrily, her voice thick with emotion. "You know what? That excuse worked once, but don't plan on it working a second time."

"By the way, where's Angela? Did you two set this whole thing up on purpose?" Brennan shouted.

"What! Why would you think I had anything to do with this? Do you really think so little of me that you would believe I would let you watch something like that?" Booth asked.

"I don't know Booth, you tell me since we're now standing on opposite sides of this door yelling at each other. I thought I knew you, but I never dreamed you would knowingly let me think you were dead for nearly two weeks either." Brennan ranted. "Would you tell Angela I need to talk to her," she demanded angrily. She's the one that brought the dumb movie. I should really be yelling at her, too."

_I should have known she had something up her sleeve tonight, when she kept asking me if Frank reminded me of anyone._ "She kept flipping her head at you, like she had some nervous twitch or something." Brennan continued ranting at Booth.

Booth sighed and again reached up to run his fingers through his already tousled hair. Someone cleared their throat and Booth looked behind him to see Angela and Jack hovering at the end of the hallway. Angela mouthed to him, "I'm not here. Keep talking to her." Booth shrugged his shoulders and tossed his hands in the air. He reached up and cupped his ear to indicate he couldn't hear her.

10:15 p.m.

Jack took Angela by the arm and pulled her back down the hall into the den. "Okay, so now what? Are you planning on letting Brennan stay locked in the bathroom for the rest of the night?"

"What? No. Just give Booth a little more time. She's not only miffed at him but, she's mad at me too. She'll come storming out of there, ranting about some anthropological reason for forcing her to watch the movie." Angela said.

"Seriously, you really think she'll find an anthropological reason for that too?" Jack asked in astonishment.

Angela rolled her eyes in frustration at Jack, "Right, as though she doesn't _always _find a way to bring anthropology into everything? Geez, Jack, how _long _have you worked with her, and you still don't know that about her? God, it's so true, you _guys _are totally _clueless _when it comes to women. I swear, sometimes I don't understand how the human race has managed to survive as long as it has."

Angela turned and started out the door, she said over her shoulder, "I'm going back to see if these two finally get their act together. I won't settle for anything less than the two of them finally admitting they mean more to each other than their pat _we're just partner's,_ answer they give to the rest of us. Are you coming with me or not?"

Jack sighed, rolled his eyes and said, "I guess so. I sure hope you know what you're doing, because I don't want to have to pick up all the pieces if this plan of yours backfires."

"You have so little faith in my abilities? How do you think I managed to snag you?" Angela asked with a wink. "Do you want me to do a demonstration right now of how that happened?"

Jack gulped and with his eyes bulging in shock he managed to say, "Um…seriously you would do that here, with Brennan and Booth right down the hall?"

"Try me and we'll see…"

10:20 p.m.

Brennan turned and saw her reflection in the mirror once again. This time her cheeks were flushed bright red from anger, her sapphire blue eyes sparkling with life. The last few weeks had been harder than she ever dreamed possible. "I thought you were getting Angela so I could talk to her."

"We're not through talking yet." Booth told her as he began pacing in front of the bathroom door. "Don't forget you aren't the only one who survived Pam Nunun's madness."

"Booth…" Brennan began. She was beginning to feel a bit ashamed. _I guess I should be grateful that Pam hadn't been a trained sniper._ At one point she truly wanted to be dead too, as she had felt there was nothing left in her life worth living for unless Booth had still been a part of it.

Booth's voice was beginning to sound desperate as he felt he was not getting through to her. "I was the one that got shot, remember? Do you really think I could have sat and watched this movie knowing that Frank was going to get shot while trying to protect Rachel; just like I did when Pam took a shot at you?"

Booth was now thoroughly agitated. He continued pacing back and forth while wringing his hands together. "What do you think I am some kind of masochist? I just told you I forgot about that entire scene. Geez, Bones do you think I have a photographic memory? I'm sorry, but I'm not perfect; my names not Zack!"

"I know you took a bullet for me. I'll never be able to thank you enough for that. However, I'm still really pissed that you did. Why did you do that Booth? Why would you do that knowing it was possible you could leave Parker fatherless? How could you do that to me, knowing what I went through when my family left Russ and me? What would I have told Parker when he came to me and asked why his Daddy was dead?" Brennan asked with a sob.

"Bones, please don't cry," Booth said as he rattled the door once more. "Bones open the door, please. I need to see you. I swear to you when Pam was screaming my name, and I realized she had a gun and was going to shoot you, I didn't think about Parker. All I knew was that I had to keep her from shooting you no matter what it took."

By now Brennan was sobbing in earnest, "Damn it Bones, open this door now or I swear I'm going to kick it in!" Once again he grabbed the door handle and tried to open the door. "I'm counting to three and then I'm coming in whether you open this door or not!"

"One…Two…Three…" Just as Booth shoved on the bathroom door Brennan opened it causing him to fall into her arms, nearly knocking them both to the floor. Brennan gasped as he knocked the breath out of her.

They finally managed to right themselves. Booth placed his hands on her arms pulling her out into the hallway. Booth reached up gently brushed away the tear slowly sliding down her cheek, "I can't even imagine how hard that must have been for you thinking you would have to tell Parker what happened. Bones I never meant to put you in a position like that. I'm so sorry."

Brennan struggled to pull away from his grasp and with a sob she asked, "What if you really die and it was because of me? What will I tell Parker, that his father died because he cared more about protecting me than he loved his own son? Booth, please don't make me do that. I can't ever tell him that his father is _never _coming home."

Booth wrapped his arms around her and held on tight. He whispered in her ear, "Do you really think that Parker or anyone could ever blame you if I actually died? Come on, Bones, how many times have you already saved me or vice versa? Let me ask you this…What am I supposed to tell Russ and Max if you should die? Do you think I will feel any less guilty having to share the same news with your family?"

Brennan was silent for a few minutes thinking about what Booth had said. She leaned back and reached up to wipe her nose, "I'm sorry, Booth, I never thought about that. I didn't think that you would feel the same way I do. Well, actually it never occurred to me because for so many years I didn't have anyone to care about me. Yes, Russ was around, we just never seemed to be able to talk to each other."

Listen to me, "No matter what you think, it wouldn't have been your fault if I had died. It would have been mine."

"What! Why would you think that?" Brennan demanded. "It wasn't your fault it wasn't anyone's fault but Pam's. She was the one with the gun."

"Yes, it was my fault. Don't you remember Sweet's tried to warn me not to talk to her? He thought she was a few cards shy of a full deck."

"I don't understand, what do you mean?"

"It means she was not all there mentally." He explained.

"Ya, think…"

"No kidding and how could I have been so stupid not to have seen that? What was wrong with me? What happened to my famous _gut_ letting me know when the bad guys are lying?" Booth berated himself.

Brennan reached up and took his face in her hands, her eyes locked on his. "Look at me. I want you to promise me that you won't blame yourself for what happened? It wasn't your fault that Pam tried to shoot me. She was sick Booth, there had to be something wrong with her brain. You weren't the first man she stalked."

"I know that Bones, I read the file, remember?"

"Yes, I know you know that _here"_ she said pointing at his brain, "but you need to believe it _here,"_ she said as she pointed to his heart.

Booth dropped his head down until they were standing forehead to forehead and nose to nose. He reached up and cupped her face in his hands, locking them together. "I will if you'll promise to always remember that if anything goes wrong and I'm injured or possibly die that you won't blame yourself?"

Brennan took a deep breath and said, "But what if I _am _the cause of…"

"Shh Bones. We're not going to go there. Do you remember the promise we made to each other after Richard Benoit attacked you in New Orleans?"

"Yes…"

In unison they both said, "We promised no matter how dangerous a case became, if one or both of us were injured or taken hostage we would never stop fighting until we found our way home to each other."

They were both smiling now. "I think it's time for a new pact," Booth said. "If something ever goes wrong we both knowinour heart and our mindsthat we did everything possible to keep ourselves safe."

With a smile Booth held up his hand and asked, "Shall we pinkie swear, Bones?" To his surprise she nodded her head, held up her hand and locked pinkies with his.

"I have no doubt, both our family and friends will know that, no matter what happens, we were there for each other to the end. There will _never _be any question about that." Booth promised her.

10:45 p.m.

Angela and Jack returned to their post, standing in the shadows at the end of the hallway. Angela grabbed Jack by the arm and squeezed like crazy when she saw her best friend nose to nose with Booth. They were so sweet together. In all of her life she had never seen two people so in tuned to one another than these two.

_Yes, I knew it!_ Finally, the moment she had been waiting to happen for the past three and a half years was at hand. As one Booth and Brennan's lips met in a soft but passionate kiss that quickly turned into a full blown, opened mouth, breathless, totally hot tongue fest. In shock Angela watched her best friend's arms snake around Booth's neck, yanking him even closer to her if that was even possible. Booth's arms wrapped around her back and slid to her waist pulling her hips towards his. Soon they were both gasping for breath.

Suddenly Angela gasped in fright. From out of the shadows she and Jack saw a black and tan ball of fur with black pointy ears launch himself at Brennan, hitting her in the back of the knees. Brennan squealed in fright as she was shoved into Booth and the two of them began freefalling. In an instant their friends were on the floor in a tangled heap. Barney was crawling all over them, licking their faces and whining in excitement.

Thankfully Angela remembered the light switch in the hallway and flipped it on as she and Jack said in unison, "Oh my God! Are you guys okay?" Only now that the light was on did everyone realize just where and what Barney had been up to earlier when he had left the den. There was a trail of shredded, white cotton looking tufts, beginning in the bathroom and ending down the hall, at the entrance to Brennan's bedroom.

At first neither Booth or Jack realized exactly what Barney had in his mouth until Booth reached up and said, "Barney, what have you gotten into now? Booth commanded, "Drop it." Barney opened his mouth and proudly dropped his new prize into Booth's hand. Booth squealed like a girl when he realized just exactly what Barney had been carrying around in his mouth. In an instant he was up and on his feet, wiping his hands down the front of his jeans. "Oh God, Bones, please tell me that was a _new _one and not a used one! Eww! Gross!"

"Oh God, Barney you didn't?" Brennan asked as she dropped her head down and covered her flaming cheeks with her hands. He promptly sat down and leaned over on one hip again, titling his head from one said to the other, one of his bright orange eyebrows lifting up and down one after the other, giving her his infamous, _Who me?_ Look that says; _I didn't do anything, honest._

Brennan's face was beet red in embarrassment as Barney had retrieved his prize once more. He was now standing over the two of them holding in his mouth one of the few remaining intact tampons she probably had left. If she wasn't mistaken the tampons were not the only victim of his recent antics, it looked like he had probably been in her package of feminine pads too.

Jack and Angela were beginning to laugh hysterically, faces flaming in either embarrassment or laughter, no one really knew which. "Oh, and I thought the tongue picture would make me this week's King of the Lab! Wait until Zack and the rest of the squints get a look at this!" Jack exclaimed as he began fumbling around in his jacket pocket for his cell phone.

Her face still flushed in embarrassment Brennan said, "Hodgin's, I'd really rather you didn't take a picture of all this." She gestured towards the bathroom and down the hallway that now sported tons of little white cotton pieces leading towards her bedroom.

Booth was instantly in Jack's face, "don't even think about it Bud, not unless you want to be talking like a girl for the next few weeks." he threatened.

"C'mon Booth, you have to admit this would make some awesome blackmail material," Jack whined.

"No, you're not going to use this against Bones, not after all she's done for you over the years."

"God, you sure know how to take all the fun out of life, don't you?" Jack grumbled at Booth. They were now nose to nose, chests puffed out testing each other to see who would give in first.

"Sweetie, why don't you and Booth take Barney out for his evening walk and Brennan and I will clean up this mess." Angela walked over and kissed Jack on the cheek, whispering something to him that neither Brennan nor Booth could hear. Whatever she said Jack was instantly all smiles and sweetness.

"C'mon Booth, let's take Barney for that walk. By the time we get back the girls should be all done cleaning up, and we can get out of your hair for the night."

A few minutes later the apartment was finally peaceful and quite for the first time in hours. Brennan and Angela's eyes met and within seconds they were rolling on the floor laughing. "I'm going to kill Russ when I see him tomorrow," Brennan said between her uncontrollable giggling fits. "I refuse to dog watch Barney until he finishes his obedience training. I can't believe of all the things he could find to get into it had to be my personal hygiene products."

"God I know but I will never forget the look on Booth's face when he realized exactly what it was Barney had dropped in his hand." Angela said as she continued to chuckle while helping Brennan pick up the trail of shredded cotton.

"Yeah, well did you happen to notice Jack's face too? He was just as shocked and embarrassed as Booth. Here, you can put the remains in this," Brennan said as she brought the trash can out for Angela.

"Yes, I saw Jack's face."

"So, how did you like the movie, Bren?" Angela asked all innocent like.

"Ange, I shouldn't even be talking to you right now. How could you do that to me?"

"Oh, sweetie I didn't know how else to get through to you. I won't say I'm sorry. I think this whole night has worked out pretty well so far. We saw you two making out. At least until Barney knocked you guys off your feet."

"Yeah, I guess Booth and I could say the earth really moved for us tonight!" Brennan said with a smirk. She and Angela made eye contact and burst into laughter.

"Hey, when did you get so funny Bren?"

"Oh, once in a while I even surprise myself." Brennan said with a grin.

11:30 p.m.

Booth and Jack had gone for an extended walk around the neighborhood after Barney had taken care of his business. There was a chill in the air from a light breeze blowing. The leaves were now rustling and they could hear the sounds of the late evening insects, and an occasional _who_ from the night owls.

"So," Jack began, "what century do you plan on asking Dr. Brennan out on a date?"

"What? Why would- we're just partners." Booth began to explain.

"Really, is that why you two were practically jumping each others bones in the hallway earlier?"

"Wait…How would you- We were not jumping each others bones, and even if we were it's none of your damn business, Hodgin's. This from you of all people, don't you think that's kind of like the pot calling the kettle black? Booth asked annoyed. I've heard the rumors about Angela, you and the Egyptian room."

"Hey, don't take your sexual frustrations out on me and Angela." Jack growled.

"Fine, you butt out of mine and Bones' personal lives and I will."

"Are you willing to risk loosing her to some other guy?" Jack asked.

"I'm just not sure she's ready to be in a real relationship yet, and I don't want to rush her."

"Are you blind? She's so ready to be in a relationship with you." Jack said in frustration. "No wonder Angela thinks the male species is clueless."

"Hey, don't talk to me about being clueless when it comes to women, how long did it take you to get Angela to agree to marry you?"

"First of all we're not talking about me. Dude, you almost died a few weeks ago, I think it's time to push her and see what happens. Don't wait until it's too late. Why don't you ask her about the note she wrote while she was buried alive by the Gravedigger." Jack suggested.

"Wait…Umm…What are you talking about- what note? She wrote a note? Booth demanded. "Who did she write it to? She never said anything to me. There was no note left at the crime scene, if there had been I would have been informed." Booth grabbed the front of Jack's shirt and yelled, "Damn it, Jack, who did she write to?"

"Geez, Booth, get a grip man! I don't know, she didn't say, and I didn't ask. I felt it was a private matter. Like I said ask her about it and see what she says."

"I'm sorry, Jack. You see what she does to me?"

"Trust me, dude I know exactly where you're coming from. Let's call it a night shall we. Angela's got a surprise planned for me." Jack told him as he patted him on the shoulder.

11:45 p.m.

They had just finished cleaning up the bathroom when they heard the guys coming back in with Barney. Several minutes went by as they continued to talk quietly and go about straightening up the rest of the apartment. They could hear Booth encouraging the pup into his crate. From the sounds of it he didn't want to get in.

Brennan leaned in and whispered to Angela, "C'mon, I have to show you something." She took Angela's hand and put her finger to her lips to tell her to be quite. They slowly made their way back to the doorway to the living room where Barney's crate was.

Across the room they could see Jack standing next to the couch watching Booth, who was now on his hands and knees, eye to eye with Barney. He had the pup by the collar and was patting the bottom of the floor to the dogs crate and telling him to 'go to bed'. Barney sat down and began to pant softly, his brown eyes looking at Booth and then over at Jack.

"Barney come on, just get in the crate." Booth begged. Finally with an exasperated sigh Booth said, "Look, see there's nothing to be afraid of Barney," as he began to crawl into the dogs crate. He went all the way into the crate, turned around, clapped his hands together in excitement and commanded, "Barney. Come."

Barney stood up, leaned his head inside the crate door, bumped his nose into Booth's face and turned around and sat back down again. He twisted his head from one side to the other with a puzzled look. _Sure, like there's enough room in there for the two of us? I don't think so. Since you seem to like it so much why don't you sleep in there tonight? Sounds like a plan to me._

Booth tried one more time, "Barney. Come." He commanded with excitement. This time Barney got up and walked into the crate. _Well, that was a real smooth move Seeley, now you're both packed in here like sardines. _"Um…Hey…Wait…Let me get out of here first dog."

"Hey, you need some help, man?" Jack asked with a smirk.

"Yeah, don't just stand there do something," Booth growled.

Brennan and Angela had managed to dig out their cell phones, and had been quietly taking pictures. Finally they couldn't stay quite any longer and both of them burst into laughter. "Well, I guess we can say this should make us Queen of the Lab this week! What do you think, Angela? Brennan asked.

Booth was still inside the dog crate trying to shove Barney back out the door. Jack's head and shoulders were partially in the crate and he was pulling Barney's front legs out the door. "Well, if we weren't before we will be now. Smile boys you're on candid camera!" Angela said as she snapped one last picture.

TBC

Please don't forget to let me know what you liked or didn't like about this chapter.

A/N I know, another one. I wanted to let you all in on a little secret. :) The idea of Booth crawling into the dog crate occurred thanks to yet another former male co-worker. He actually had a German shepherd puppy who did not want to get into or use his new crate. My friend actually did crawl into Duke's size 400 airline crate to show him it was okay. I know I couldn't believe it either, nor that he actually told me he did. LOL My father sure would NEVER have done that. They do have both the plastic and wire crates size 400-500 that are big enough for a man 6 foot plus to get into. It might be a little tight but it is possible. Just ask my friend. LOL The incident with Brennan's personal items was inspired by another internet dog friend whose own dogs did exactly the same thing to her. However as she said to us thank God she was home alone when she discovered what her Am. Cocker Spaniels had been up too. LOL


	5. Chapter 5

Doggy Daycare B N' B Style

A/N I would like to thank everyone who has been reading this story over the last few months for all of your kind reviews. I am hoping some who haven't reviewed before will do so soon. There is one more chapter after this one. It is complete.  I will probably wait a day or so before posting the final chapter.

Doggy Daycare B N' B Style

Chapter Five

3:30 a.m.

Booth found he was unable to sleep. He sighed and rolled over on his side, trying to find a more comfortable position. He fluffed his pillow as he glanced at the clock on the wall; three-thirty a.m. _Looks like this will be another sleepless night_. He made a mental note to tell Brennan to buy a couch that made into a bed.

Barney had finally decided that his crate was a safe place to be. Right now Booth could hear the young pup's deep breathing and he knew he would be snoring soon.

His mind was still reeling from Jack's statement last night. He was crushed that his partner had chosen not to share her experience with him. Since Jack admitted he didn't know what she had written in her note, he doubted either of them had talked to anyone about being buried alive by the Gravedigger. This probably explained the entire locking herself in the bathroom incident last night.

Booth wondered who she had written and what the note said. Had she really believed she was about to die? Would she have been her usual, analytical self and left a note that would not have shown her true emotions? Would she have written to Max and Russ that she loved them despite everything they had put her through?

The most important thing to him was whether or not she had written him at all. Did she care enough, that she would have felt compelled to write him something that truly came from her heart? If she had, what would he have done if she had not survived the Gravedigger?

_Seeley, do you really want to know what she had written in that case? Do I even want to know now, knowing that the Gravedigger is still out there? Damn it, they really needed to make it a priority to catch this guy, whoever he was before he kidnapped someone else. _

He'd never forgive himself, if the Gravedigger buried another one of his friends before they caught him.

He couldn't understand why Brennan never told him about the note before. _I thought by now she trusted me enough to confide in me. I guess I didn't know her as well as I thought. _

He'd slowly gained her trust over the past four years. They'd been through so much together. Pretty soon they wouldn't be able to count on two hands how many times their lives had been in danger.

He couldn't afford to think about _what ifs _while he was on the job_._ If he did, he would never be able to get up and go to work everyday. If something ever happened to Brennan or his son, he really didn't know what he would do. He figured he would find the person/s responsible and take them out. _Yeah, I know who does that sound like? Max Keenan?_

He'd never willing admit it to Brennan, but he felt the exact same way as her father did about Parker and her. _ You mess with my family you better be willing to pay the consequences._

He rather enjoyed that idea, as it made him sound like one of the characters in a John Wayne movie. He would never forget her pathetic imitation of _The Duke. _Just thinking about it brought a smile to his face and made him laugh out loud.

Instantly, Barney was awake and turning circles in his crate. When that didn't appear to get him the attention he wanted he began to whine quietly.

"Shh Barney it's not time to get up." Booth could see from the light of the moon, the young pup was looking at him with his brown eyes bugging out of his head. He whined again.

"No way, I'm not taking you out, so get over it." Barney spun around in his crate, threw himself down with a loud sniff and a huge sigh. He laid his muzzle between his front paws and continued to stare at Booth with pleading eyes. _Just keep ignoring me, and you'll be sorry. _ Once in a while one orange eyebrow would lift up and then down.

The two of them looked at each other for several minutes before Booth's eyes began to drift closed. Soon Booth was mumbling half asleep _what stinks?_ He slowly opened one eye and saw Barney still watching him. He whined softly when they made eye contact.

Suddenly Booth jumped up and said, "Dude, you better not have left anything in that crate! I'll be right back then we'll go for a run. Hopefully, we'll both get some sleep when we get back."

Brennan had tossed and turned for some time. She heard Barney off and on, until he had finally settled down with a huge sigh and gone to sleep. Afterwards, her mind had been spinning with memories from last night.

She was grateful she had pulled herself together before Angela and Jack saw her meltdown. Brennan was not sure she would be able to forgive her for forcing them to watch the movie, _The Bodyguard._ Soon, she and Angela were going to have a more in-depth talk about her matchmaking tactics.

She'd been so mad at Angela and Booth that she hadn't been able to see straight. After Booth finally talked her out of the bathroom, she realized how much his getting shot had affected them both.

In all the excitement of, Booth's, supposed death, then finding him alive, she sometimes forgot that Pam had intended to kill her, and not her partner.

She had no idea that the movie would cause the reaction she and Booth had. Kissing him in front of Angela and Jack had _not_ been on her list of things to do.

Where _had_ that kiss come from?_ Had she used the kiss as an excuse not to deal with her feelings about the shooting?_ She had to admit, it certainly worked, as she was most definitely not thinking about it, when they were locked in each others arms.

If they didn't stop these impromptu kissing fests soon, she would have to ask him when he was going to eliminate that ridiculous line he'd drawn between them.

While watching the movie, Brennan, realized that she needed to do something about the panic attacks she'd been having ever since Booth was shot. Tonight was the first time she had experienced one with her friends and family around. Usually, they happened at night, after she had gone to bed.

With everything Brennan had experienced so far, she might as well have been involved in some branch of the military. Not for the first time, she wondered how, Booth, survived some of the things he had seen or been forced to do while he'd been a Sniper in the Army.

No wonder they'd seemed to bond on so many levels. They never had to explain to each other why they chose to stay in their jobs, when most normal people would have thrown in the towel long ago.

All of this thinking made her tired, a short while later she drifted off to sleep. Not long afterwards, she began to dream about life with her family when she was a young girl. Soon her head was full of images from her time spent in El Salvador and New Orleans. Later the dream morphed into the faces of Special Agent Jamie Kenton, Richard Benoit, and Pam Nunan as each of them attempted to kill her. Just before she woke up, she found herself dreaming about being buried alive by the Gravedigger.

She was mumbling and thrashing around, fighting with imaginary enemies. The bed sheets were beginning to get tangled in her legs. Brennan was so scared, in her dream, the explosion she had rigged to free herself and Jack from the car had failed. Suddenly all the sand and dirt was caving in on them. She couldn't breathe. She began to cry in-between gasping for air. Suddenly she began to scream, and scream…

5:00 a.m.

Booth and Barney had enjoyed a long trip around the neighborhood. They had walked for a while when Booth decided it was time to start his morning run. He hoped to burn off enough energy that he could finally catch a few hours of much needed sleep once he returned to Brennan's apartment.

He and Barney jogged their way up to Brennan's apartment door, just as he opened the door to let them in, Barney bolted in ahead of him, causing the door to slam into the wall with a loud bang. He nearly knocked Booth to the floor before he was able to shut the door behind them.

"Shh, we don't want to wake Bones." He began to admonish Barney when they heard Brennan's blood curdling screams. They jumped in fright. Together they raced towards Brennan's room.

Barney was growling the hair on the back of his neck rose as they ran through the door. Booth quickly scanned the room, thinking someone must have broken in, when they were on their morning walk. He heaved a sigh of relief when Barney stopped growling, and it appeared there was no one there except the three of them.

Brennan was still screaming and thrashing around in the bed. Her hair was a tangled mess, her cheeks tearstained from crying. Booth began to call her name, as both he and the pup tried to awaken her without scaring her more.

Booth walked towards the bed, he grabbed Barney's collar to prevent him from jumping up to see Brennan.

Barney started to whine. He began to struggle, trying to break free from Booth. _Hey, what are you doing? She needs me. Can't you tell how scared she is? I'll protect you, Brennan._

"Barney, everything is okay. Settle down boy." Booth soothed the young pup.

Booth knew what his partner was going through, as he and several of his Army buddies had suffered from nightmares and what the Military finally began to call Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

It is a known fact that everyone who has suffered a traumatic event usually suffers from this ailment as well. It might happen right away, or it could take years before the body finally succumbs to the stress it has endured.

"Bones! Bones, wake up!"

He reached out to touch her arm, which turned out to be a huge mistake. God, he should have known better than to do that. Brennan immediately grabbed his wrist and flipped him on the ground in one smooth move. It took him a minute to catch his breath.

"Bones wake up, it's me, Booth." She was still in the throes of her dream and began to fight him in earnest now.

Booth grunted as she jabbed him in the groin. He finally decided he'd had enough. He scooped her up in his arms and tossed her on the bed, before straddling her waist and sitting on top of her. He grabbed her wrists and held them over her head so she could no longer use them to hit him.

Unfortunately, that really ticked her off. She began to buck her hips up off the bed, trying to knock Booth off of her. Brennan began to yell at him, her voice partially choked with tears, "No! Get off me! Stop, let me go!"

"Bones damn it! Wake up! You're okay, it's just me."

He finally began to plead with her in a quieter, softer voice. "Shh, wake up. Bones, you're safe. You're home, in your own bed." She started to calm down as soon as he stopped yelling at her. She was not fully awake. Booth let go of her wrists with one hand so he could touch her face. He gently shook her awake.

Barney, who didn't want to be left out of the excitement, jumped up and stuck his front feet on the bed. He could see her now so he stuck his nose in her face, and then began licking her tears away. She jumped as she felt his hot, wet, pink sloppy tongue slurping her face.

"Eww! Gross! Barney get off me! I don't need a tongue bath." Suddenly her eyes flew open in shock when she realized that someone was holding her arms over her head.

"Booth, what are you doing? Why are you sitting on top of me?" Brennan demanded.

His face began to flush when he realized what she must be thinking, since he was not only in her room, but straddling her as he hold her down on the bed. "Um…Uh…This isn't what it looks like. Geez Bones, thank God you're finally awake."

He quickly scrambled up off of her bed then pulled Barney off of her.

"What do you mean, thank God I'm awake? What are you talking about?" she asked in confusion.

She pulled herself up on the bed until she was leaning against the headboard. Booth returned to the side of the bed and sat down next to her.

"You honestly don't remember? Do you know what just happened?"

"No. I remember hearing Barney moving around in his crate before I drifted off to sleep. I don't remember anything else. Not until I woke up, with Barney licking my face and you pinning me to the bed." She told him as she reached up and brushed her hair out of her face.

She realized she must have been sweating as her face and hair were damp. Her pajamas were sticking to her back, "Why, what happened, Booth? Why were you in my room?" she asked, her voice beginning to sound panicked.

"You don't remember screaming and crying in your sleep just now? Do you remember if you were dreaming?"

"What? Why would…I was _not _screaming and crying in my sleep. No way," she said as she began to argue with him.

"Bones, seriously do you think I would lie to you about something like that? Why would I do that? Personally, I think maybe you need to talk to someone about all the things you've been through in the last few years."

"No way! I'm not talking to a psychiatrist," she yelled. "You know how much I _hate _them."

"Bones, from what I witnessed just now, I'm pretty sure you're suffering from Post Traumatic Stress. Either that or a very bad case of panic attacks."

"There's nothing wrong with me!" she snapped at him, as she jumped off the bed and ran past him.

"Oh, no you don't, we're not going to have another conversation through that bathroom door!" Booth growled as he grabbed her by the arm, then dragged her back to the bed, and forced her to sit on the edge. He sat down, turned his body towards her as he gripped her hands in his, and began gently stroking her wrists with his thumbs to calm her.

"I was dreaming? What makes you think I was dreaming?"

"You don't remember screaming at me to _leave you alone, stop, let me go _and then screaming _no _while you were_ crying and gasping for air _like you couldn't breathe?"

Brennan's face turned ashen, her hands began to shake, "I remember! I was dreaming about my parents and Russ when we were a _normal_ family. Oh God, then the dream morphed into a bunch of flashes of Kenton, Benoit and Nunan when they tried to kill me. No wonder you hate clowns, the faces I saw in my dream were horribly disfigured. They kept trying to hurt me, or drag me away with them." She whispered her voice shaking with fear.

"Do you remember anything else? You kept acting like you couldn't breathe and it seemed like you were trying to claw your way out of somewhere. You totally freaked out when I touched you on the arm."

Brennan looked at him her eyes still full of fear, looking as big as saucers, "I _freaked out…_What does that mean?Did I… do…something to you? Oh God, I did! Is that why you were sitting on me and holding my wrists?"

Booth tried to soothe her fears. He began to tell her quietly, with a small smile, "I thought you were awake, until you grabbed my wrist when I touched you on the arm. With one smooth move you promptly tossed me on the floor next to the bed." He laughed. "You knocked the wind out of me. When I kept calling your name and you wouldn't respond, that's when I knew you weren't awake."

"I didn't hurt you, did I? I'm so sorry. I was dreaming about the Gravedigger. He caught me and Jack again, only this time when I rigged the explosion to get us out it didn't work. That's why I was choking. Booth, he's still out there, what if he grabs me or someone else again? I was so scared that we were going to die and no one would ever find us."

Her lip began to tremble as her eyes started to well with fresh tears, "I know you would never stop looking for me, but sometimes no matter how hard we try, some things don't work out in our favor."

Booth pulled her into his arms and hugged her. He whispered in her ear "I'd never stop looking for you, no matter how long it took to find you."

She hugged him back fiercely, "I know you would. What if he tries to hurt my family now? He must be really mad that Jack and I got away. What if he uses the fact we escaped to hurt my family? I can't loose them now, not after all we've been through." She sobbed, her face buried in his neck.

"Shh, I promise you we'll catch him. Bones, look at me," he said as he pulled away from her and looked into her eyes. "I really think you need to talk to someone about what's been going on with you."

"No way! I'm not talking to Dr. Sweets, or any other stupid psychiatrist!" she yelled at him, as she began to struggle to get away from him.

"Fine, if you won't agree to talk to Dr. Sweets then talk to me. Let me help you, Bones. I know more about this then you know. Trust me, okay?" he asked. "If you don't feel comfortable talking to me then maybe we can get Dr. Wyatt to come and see you. Please, just think about it okay?"

She continued to struggle to get away from him. She refused to look at him and mumbled, "It'll be over my dead body, before I talk to a stupid psychiatrist!"

"Don't pull away from me. You _need _to talk about this. You don't want to end up like me and develop some addiction because you can't deal with all the crap you've been through. I know it will make you sick, on so many levels if you don't find a way to deal with what's happened to you."

"I can't talk to anyone about this now. I'll think about it. That's all I can do. Please, give me a little more time. I know I can work this out." She begged him.

Booth hugged her again. Barney jumped up and knocked them both back onto the bed, then crawled up on top of them. His tail wagging like crazy, he began sniffing and licking their faces. He finally lay down between the two of them, his chin resting on Brennan's thigh, where he could not only see her but keep an eye on Booth. They both began to pet him, and soon they drifted off to sleep. Before Barney dozed off with them he thought, _your safe now. I'll protect you guys. _

7:00 a.m.

Booth was awakened by Barney crawling up on his stomach as he began to snort and sniff his way towards Booth's chin. He began bathing his face in sloppy wet puppy kisses.

"Barney, enough," he whispered. I'm up already." He gently pushed the pup off his side of the bed.

Somehow during the few hours of sleep he had gotten, Brennan had managed to roll over until she was snuggled into his shoulder. He could feel her breath at the base of his throat. Very carefully he pulled his arm out from under her then slipped out of bed. He pulled the covers over her, bent down and gently kissed her forehead.

"Let's go boy," he whispered as he took the pup by the collar then led him from the room. He made sure he closed the door all the way to keep Barney from waking Brennan.

"So, Barney what exactly does a vegetarian eat for breakfast?" Barney just looked at him with a quizzical expression on his face. Those bright orange eyebrows bounced up and down.

Booth took Barney out for another walk. When he returned, he took a quick shower then turned on the computer to look for a vegetarian breakfast recipe.

He finally settled on one called Sparkling Fruit Salad. This one had all the ingredients that Brennan had available in her kitchen. Booth quickly printed the recipe out and carried it into the kitchen with him.

Barney followed him from one room to another. He had tried a few times to go and see Brennan but someone had closed the door to her room. _What's up with that? Doesn't he trust me with her?_

While Booth was in the kitchen gathering all of the ingredients for the fruit salad he went through Brennan's recipe box looking for the crepe recipe she had made for them the morning before. He quickly mixed up the batter and set it in the refrigerator until Brennan got up.

He looked over the fruit salad recipe as he grabbed each of the following items and mixed them together as the recipe specified.

Sparkling Fruit Salad

1 fresh pineapple, cut into chunks

1 (11 ounce) can mandarin oranges, drained

1 cup halved fresh strawberries

1 cup halved green grapes

1 cup white wine or white grape juice (of course he chose the white wine)

½ cup chilled club soda

In a large serving bowl, combine the pineapple, oranges, strawberries and grapes. Combine wine or grape juice and club soda; pour over fruit. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Serve with a slotted spoon.

Booth decided later he would add some chopped almonds to this and see how it tasted. He always liked a little more crunch to his salads. He was pretty sure Brennan would enjoy them too.

He had another idea that he planned to keep secret until Brennan woke up. He began to pack a few things to take with them later.

9:30 a.m.

"Ok, Barney lets go see if sleeping beauty can drag herself out of bed so we can show her today's surprise."

Barney jumped up and followed him down the hall to Brennan's room. Booth barely had the door open a crack, when Barney stuffed his nose between the door-frame and the door, then shoved his way into the room. He darted over to the bed, tail wagging in excitement. He laid his chin on the mattress then began to pant, blowing hot air in Brennan's face. Barney began giving her tons of sloppy wet kisses.

"Good grief, get off of me you obnoxious dog," Brennan complained as she tried to push his muzzle away from her face. "I'm up already Barney. God what time is Russ coming to take your little butt home?" she continued to grumble under her breath. "This is the last time I'm watching you until you have officially graduated from obedience school!"

"Chop, chop, Bones! Barney and I have plans for today. We're on a time limit, since Barney leaves at five tonight. So hurry up, get dressed," Booth told her, his voice full of excitement. "It's a beautiful day Bones. We're just itching to get out of here."

Brennan rather reluctantly crawled out of bed. She grabbed some clothes from the dresser before she thought to ask, "Where are we going? How should I dress, Booth?"

"Um…I'd say…you should probably wear something you can layer. The weather is supposed to be nice today but where we're going it could get chilly in a few hours."

"Ok…I'll try to be ready in thirty minutes. I'm not promising…"

10:15 a.m.

Booth ushered Barney and Brennan out to the SUV. He opened the back so the pup could get into his crate. Once the pup was settled in he opened the passenger door for Brennan. As soon as she was inside she put her seatbelt on. Booth handed her a fancy handkerchief.

"Um…So, what's this for?"

"I want you to cover your eyes with it. Remember, I told you I want to surprise you."

"Is this really necessary?"

"Yes, because if you don't put it on, we're going to spend the rest of the day in the parking lot. Just humor me Bones'." He said in exasperation.

"I'm going to look ridiculous sitting in the front seat with a blindfold over my eyes." She continued to complain. "What happens if someone pulls you over because they think you're kidnapping me?"

"Oh, for heavens sake, do you _always _have to have the last _word?_ Why do you have to argue with me about everything?"

"I do not argue with you all the time," she huffed angrily.

"Really, like you're not arguing with me now?" he snarled back.

"Fine, I'll put the thing on."

"Good, that was all I wanted you to do to begin with." In a few minutes they were on the road to his secret rendezvous.

TBC

Please let me know what you enjoyed most or least from this chapter or a previous one.


	6. Chapter 6

Doggy Daycare B N' B Style

A/N This is the final chapter of this story. I hope that everyone who has been reading this enjoys this chapter as much as I did while I was writing it.

Doggy Daycare B N' B Style

Chapter 6

10:45 a.m.

The weather was gorgeous. The sky was bright blue with white fluffy clouds. He had chosen a spot not far from Boulder Bridge in Rock Creek Park to have their late morning picnic. He was hoping that they would be greeted by several of the native wildlife while they enjoyed their breakfast.

He knew that Bones needed some time to herself where she felt safe. He was hoping she would finally be able to relax here. He had found this place by accident several years ago after he had been unable to solve one of his more emotional cases. He always felt at peace here.

A short while later they arrived at the park. He stopped the SUV, turned to his partner who was still wearing her blindfold, "I'd like you to sit here for a few minutes. I don't want you to see where you are yet. I'm going to take a few minutes to unload everything, then I'll come back to get you and Barney."

"Booth is this really necessary? Why can't I come with you?"

"Are you going to argue with me again?"

Brennan sighed, "No, I'll wait for you."

Several minutes later Booth returned to collect Brennan. "Stay here for a second until I get Barney, then we'll head out to our special spot."

They only walked a short distance before he asked Brennan to stop, handed her Barney's leash then removed her blindfold. It was so bright she had to squint to see exactly where she was. The sight that greeted her was amazing. Booth had chosen what had to be one of the most beautiful places she had seen in some time.

They were standing next to a wooden picnic table that now had a pretty red and white checkered tablecloth covering it. Right now there was a small gas grill that they would use to fix the crepes that went with the fruit salad Booth had made earlier that morning. He had set the picnic table with silverware from her apartment. There were two crystal glasses filled with wine.

The picnic table itself was sitting near a small bubbling creek whose banks gently sloped away into an open meadow surrounded by a lightly forested area. There was also a very old, but quaint bridge that spanned the creek that was built completely out of boulders.

Brennan gasped in shock. She turned to her partner, with tears glistening on her lashes. "You did all of this for me? Why? No one has _ever _done anything like this for me before."

His face beaming he asked, "Does that mean you like it? Amazing, never would have guessed it with all of the complaining you were doing." He teased.

"My God Booth, why would you think I wouldn't like it? The setting alone would have been enough, but you even made us breakfast or I guess now it might be considered brunch since it's so late."

"Well, whose fault is that, sleeping beauty?"

"Hey, I can't help it you let me sleep in. You should have woken me up sooner."

"Nah, I figured you could use the sleep after what happened last night. Today is all about relaxing and having fun."

Booth took Barney's leash from her then took him over to the stake he had pounded into the ground earlier to tie him up. He didn't want the young pup scaring off any of the wildlife. "He'll stay out of trouble this way."

"Do you need me to do anything? What are we having?"

"No, I have everything ready, except for cooking the crepes. I brought some cherry filling for them. I also made a dish called Sparkling Fruit Salad. I wasn't sure what else to make, since I know you don't eat meat."

"Booth, everything looks wonderful. I'm sure I'll like what you made."

They were just finishing up their meal, when Booth pointed across the creek. He whispered quietly, "Look, near the tree line, do you see the white tailed doe? She has a fawn too."

The doe began to walk slowly towards the creek, her ears flicking back and forth listening for any sign of danger to her or her offspring. She stopped occasionally to munch on the rich spring grass, her fawn frolicking along beside her.

Brennan turned to her partner her sapphire blue eyes sparkling with wonder. She was smiling, as she turned back to the scene in front of her. She grabbed Booth's forearm and whispered in excitement. "Look, in the tree, is that a squirrel?"

"Yes. There are tons of them out here. I almost always find them when I come. Only once or twice have I seen the elusive fox or coyote that are supposed to live here too."

Barney had been watching quietly, but the sight of the little bushy tailed squirrel was just too much for him. _Oh my God! Is that a cat? It's a cat! Has to be a cat! _ He jumped up and began to whine.

The does head jerked up instantly. In a flash she and her fawn disappeared into the trees. The little squirrel began to chatter angrily then ran further up into the tree until he disappeared from sight.

Barney was barking in excitement, his tail wagging furiously. His ears were pricked forward, he began spinning in circles. He strained at the leash, hoping to get free so he could chase the squirrel that he was certain had to be a cat.

"Oh…look at what you've done. Barney you've chased them all away," said Brennan in disappointment.

"Well, they won't come back now. I guess we better think about packing stuff up. We don't want to miss Russ, when he and the girls come to pick up you know who later."

"I'll help you. I need to settle down Barney first."

"No, I'll do it. Just sit here so you can enjoy the last few minutes of your time here today. When I'm done packing everything in the SUV I'll come back to get you. We can walk back with Barney together. Not sure we can trust him to behave himself after his little barking fest with the squirrel."

Brennan went over to sit with Barney. While she was sitting with him she began talking to him about the events of the night before. He stuck his cold wet nose in her ear. He began to sniff and lick the inside of her ear. She began to giggle hysterically. It not only tickled, but his sniffing caused her to have goose bumps. The more she laughed and squealed the faster his tail wagged.

That was the way Booth found them when he returned. They were rolling around on the ground, with his partner laughing and gasping for air, as she attempted to push then shove Barney off of her. He smiled knowing that he had brought at least a few hours of happiness to her. He knew it wouldn't fix the real problem, but at least it was a start.

"All right you two lets get this show on the road. Better get home before five, or we might be forced to dog watch this little monster for another day."

"No way! He's not staying one more day!"

As they began walking back towards the parking lot, Barney began to whine. He started to run, straining at the end of his leash. He was barking in excitement now. _There you are! I'm gonna get you this time. Don't run away cat, wait for me! I'm coming._

Brennan jerked back on Barney's leash. She gave him the command to heel, but he was not interested in listening to her now. Everything was about the cat. Well, technically it was a squirrel, but what does a dog know?

By now he was starting to drag her across the parking lot in an effort to catch up with the cat-squirrel.

"Booth help me! I can't keep up with him."

Brennan was literally being dragged behind the young pup now, not unlike the way he had skied poor little Emma into her office on Friday afternoon. If she couldn't stop him soon she was going to be dragged on her hands and knees across the pavement.

Booth had stopped before all the confusion began to remove a rock from his shoe. When he heard his partner begging for help with the young pup, he quickly began hopping on one foot trying to get his shoe back on. When he finally had his shoe on he looked up to see where the two were headed. His eyes filled with panic. He saw Barney dart between two parked cars. Booth's stomach sank when he saw the car pulling into the parking lot. He knew the driver wouldn't be able to see the young dog.

Booth began to run towards the oncoming car, waving his hands frantically. He screamed for them to stop. He watched in horror as Barney continued running into the path of the oncoming car. He was now dragging his partner behind him. There was a loud bump, Barney howled in pain or fear, he wasn't sure which. Brennan screamed and so did he as he continued running toward them.

Barney was lying on his side. His partner crawling on her knees, while she tried to reach him. The tears were streaming down her face.

"Oh God! Booth, please tell me he's not dead!"

2 p.m.

"Are you sure you're ok?" Booth asked her for the millionth time. Everyone was still shook up from the accident at the park earlier.

Barney was one lucky pup. After her initial fear, she had felt the dog all over looking for any broken bones or open wounds. Thankfully for everyone he was fine. The impact had just knocked the wind out of him.

Once they knew he was going to be okay, they had calmed down the poor driver of the car. Booth had scooped Barney up in his arms then carried him back to the car before sticking him in his crate.

Now that they were back at her apartment, Booth had put Barney back in the house before going back to assist her inside. "I really should have insisted you have someone x-ray your knee," he fussed.

"I told you I'm fine. I'm sure he only strained it. However, he did give me a bit of road rash from dragging me across the blacktop. I can't believe he chased that squirrel."

"Put your arm around my neck so I can help you walk."

"Yes. Well I think you better send him off to a trainer for the next few weeks. I sure don't want to see him do that stunt when Emma or Haley is taking him for a walk. I nearly died of heart failure just watching the two of you almost get killed." He shuddered remembering the scene from earlier.

"I was thinking the same thing. The girls are going to have a fit because they'll miss him while he's gone. I can't afford not to send him away though. I would just die if anything happened to those girls because he won't mind."

Booth finally got her inside. He helped her to the couch before going to fix her a bath. He figured it was the least he could do, since he knew she had to be stiff from Barney's little stunt.

Luckily he was able to find some bubble bath that also doubled as an aroma therapy. This particular one was scented with lavender and chamomile. He sniffed it before adding it to the water. _He always wondered what scent she wore. It drove him nuts when she'd get too close to him._

Barney had walked into the bathroom with him earlier. He looked around before he stuck his nose in Booth's face.

"Well, are you asking me to forgive you for that stupid stunt you pulled?" Was he really talking out loud to the dog? "Not going to happen, bud. You really messed up today."

The tub was finally full. He turned off the water then walked out of the bathroom. He went to help Brennan get to the bathroom, so she could take her bath while the water was still hot.

After Booth left, Barney continued nosing around in the bathroom. He'd found his little green frog but no one wanted to play with him anymore. He walked over to the tub then hung his head over the edge so he could sniff the bubbles floating on top of the water. Before long he began to sneeze. _Yuck, that stunk!_ He wandered out of the bathroom.

Booth escorted her through the doorway. Before he left, he told her that he would leave the door open a crack, in case she needed him to help her out of the tub later.

She argued with herself about whether or not she should take all of her clothes off or not. Finally she decided she would leave her bra and underwear on. Brennan sat on the edge of the tub before slowly putting her battered leg into the tub.

She set her left hand on the edge of the tub so she could gently lower herself into the warm bath. Just as she began to sink to the floor of the bathtub she felt her bottom land on something rubbery. Before she could lift herself out of the tub she heard a muffled, gurgling noise, then several air bubbles floated to the surface.

"What the…!"

She gasped in shock, before reaching under the water to pull out the strange object. To her horror, she realized she was holding Barney's favorite frog squeaky. As soon as she squeezed the water out of the frog, a loud squeak erupted causing the young puppy to come running. He shoved his head through the doorway as he barreled into the room. Within a second he had promptly launched himself into the tub with her.

She screamed, "Barney! Nooooo…!" However, it was too late, as the water began sloshing over the side of the tub soaking the bathroom floor. Bubbles were flying everywhere. Brennan was trying to wipe the water out of her eyes and Barney was grabbing for his frog when Booth finally came tearing into the bathroom.

Booth's eyes were bulging in shock. He couldn't believe that Barney was in the tub with Brennan. Barney was now soaking wet. His partner's damp hair was full of little ringlets, the bubbles from the bath slowly running down her cheek and neck. She was still spitting them out of her mouth.

Booth began to laugh, as he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He quickly snapped a couple of pictures before telling her between his fits of laughter, "Look who's got some blackmail material now! I can't wait to show these pictures to your Dad, Russ and the girls. They'll love these, not to mention everyone at the Jeffersonian."

"That's it you just keep laughing Booth, enjoy this while you can."

"I'm sorry Bones, I can't help it."

"I was under the impression only one of us was getting a bath tonight, Dude," she huffed to Barney.

"This isn't funny in the least. Booth, please get this brat out of the tub so I can finish soaking."

"You might want to take your jacket off before you get it wet along with your phone. I wouldn't want them to get ruined," she added as an afterthought.

Booth walked out of the bathroom only to return a minute later. He went over to the tub, grabbed Barney's collar then began to tug him out of the tub. Barney had other ideas though. He started to struggle with Booth. The bathroom floor was still soaking wet. All it took was one hard jerk from Barney before Booth slipped on the wet floor and promptly fell into the tub. Once again the water sloshed over the sides of the tub soaking the floor with another inch or more of water.

Booth tried desperately to keep from falling on his partner. With three of them now sitting or hanging half in and out of the tub that was impossible. Another huge tidal wave, caused by Booth, rolled up into Brennan's face, nearly choking her to death. This time there was no doubt her hair was totally soaking wet.

Booth was now sitting sprawled in her lap, his jeans sopping wet from the waist down to his knees. His shirt was clinging to every muscle in his well developed chest. He too was now sporting a bubble head halo. He was the one now spitting and sputtering as he wiped the water out of his eyes.

Brennan couldn't help it. Their pathetic plight had finally gotten the best of her. She began to laugh, huge giant bubbling bursts of laugher. She was laughing so hard every once in a while she would snort before beginning another burst of laughter. Her eyes were sparkling with happiness, when only minutes before they had been spitting fire.

Booth was embarrassed at first that they were in the tub together but when his partner began to laugh with real happiness he too began to laugh.

Together they said, "Oh God, look at you!"

"Booth do you even have anything else to wear until your clothes get dry?"

"I'm not worried about it. I'm sure we'll figure something out."

He couldn't help himself he reached up to cup the back of her head before he gently brushed his lips across hers. She tasted like fruit. Her lips were soft as they brushed across his mouth before trailing kisses down his neck. Her arms came around his shoulders, her hands brushing through his damp hair as she pulled him closer to her.

With a groan they each deepened the kiss which quickly went from a soft light touch to a hot passionate one. Booth pulled her to him, her breasts were now crushed against his chest, and their breathing became ragged as the kissing went on and on.

Barney had stood watching them until he got bored._ Why don't you two get a room!_ He jumped out of the tub then promptly shook himself dry. As he shook first his head, then his neck, shoulders and back, water flew from one end of the bathroom to the other. With a startled gasp Booth and Brennan immediately stopped kissing.

"That's it bub, you're getting a bath too." Booth growled.

"Now I know why Emma brought along the high powered hair dryer. He'd never get dry with all that undercoat."

5 p.m.

The knock at the apartment door couldn't have been more welcome. _Thank God, Barney is going home!_ That was the only thought in both Brennan and Booth's mind. Booth opened the front door after checking to see if indeed it was the Brennan family.

As soon as Booth opened the door Emma, followed closely by Haley, came rushing in. Barney immediately went to both girls and smothered them in puppy kisses.

"Aunt Temperance, Barney smells so good. Did you give him a bath? We didn't expect you to do that," Emma said as she buried her nose deeper into Barney's neck so she could smell his fur.

"Unfortunately, yes poor Booth got stuck with that job. It's a long story. For now we're just happy you're all here to take him home with you."

Booth had picked up the bag with most of the pups paraphernalia in it then handed the bag to Russ. "Sorry, not to be rude or anything but here's his stuff. Brennan and I have a case so we need to leave, like now."

"Really…Um…Well, okay. Thanks Temperance we can never thank you enough for watching him this weekend," Russ said on his way out the door with Barney's stuff. Booth quickly followed behind him with the pup's crate.

In less than ten minutes they had loaded up the dog, the kids and the two adults. As Russ drove out of the parking lot, the two of them waved goodbye to Brennan's family.

"Oh my God!! Booth, were you trying to throw them out?"

They looked at each other for only a moment before they burst into laughter. "Yeah, um…I'm sorry about that. Guess I might have been a little rude."

"Did you see the look on Russ's face when I handed him Barney's bag?" he asked as he began to laugh uncontrollably again.

"Yes, it was priceless! So how soon before you're willing to watch Barney again?" Brennan asked, snickering.

He just looked at her and rolled his eyes. "NOT, in this lifetime," he laughed.

Booth put his arm around Brennan's waist as they walked up the sidewalk into her apartment. They went over to the couch and sat down. For nearly five minutes neither of them said a word.

"Listen." Brennan asked, "Isn't it lovely, the sound of peace and quiet?"

"I never thought that day would come."

"Let's just savor the moment."

The two of them snuggled down into the couch together. Booth was stroking Brennan's arm, nearly causing her to fall asleep. He finally found the courage to ask, "Is Jack right? Did you leave a note in case we didn't find you when the Gravedigger buried you alive?"

Brennan was instantly wide awake. "What? When did he tell you that?" She gasped.

"Last night after Barney tore up the bathroom. You and Angela were cleaning up when we took the dog out for a walk."

"I don't understand? Why he would tell you that?" she asked him breathlessly.

"I don't know, something about Angela thinking that men are clueless when it comes to dating and relationships. You do realize she set this whole dating thing in motion? That's why she brought that dumb movie over for us to watch."

"I don't know. It really wasn't a dumb movie. It just hit a little too close to home for both of us I think. You know, what with the whole shooting thing, stalking and ransom note, etc."

"Um…Wait…What are you saying Temperance?"

"I'll show you. Stay here, I'll be right back." Brennan got up and walked into her office. She returned in less than a minute, holding a white envelope that was still sealed. She handed it to Booth to read. On the front were the words:

_For Seeley Booth or Max Keenan, my father_

_For those who loved me enough to let me go, I forgive you. I understand now. I love you. _

_Russ, I forgive you. You'll always be my Marco. I love you. I'm sorry I didn't tell you both before now._

_Seeley, if you're reading this now, I'm probably long gone. Please don't punish yourself for not finding us in time. I know you never gave up. Jack and I did everything we could to help you find us. _

_I can never thank you enough for helping me find my family. Thank you for reminding me that I always knew how to love. I hope you know by now that if I had fallen in love again it would have been with you. _

_Please make sure that you give Russ and my father a copy of the above. I want them to know what they meant to me._

_With all my love,_

_Temperance_

Booth looked up when he finished reading the letter, his eyes damp with unshed tears. He swallowed before he asked, "Temperance does this mean what I think it does?"

"If you think it means _I love you,_ then yes. I love you, Seeley Booth, with all of my heart and soul. I've never met anyone like you. Even when I was at my worst you never gave up on me. You were the first one to treat me like a real person. You have no idea what that meant to me."

"You love me?" he asked in wonder. "I guess I need to do something about that line I drew then if that's the case."

He pulled her into his arms, his face beaming with a bright smile, "I love you too Temperance Brennan. I have loved you for so long I don't even remember when I first admitted it to myself."

He leaned in and brushed his lips across hers in a gentle kiss. He gently picked her up and carried her down the hall to her bedroom.

This was where they would begin the rest of their life together.

The End

A/N Looking forward to hearing from all of you. There are lots more of you who are looking but not leaving reviews. So please let me know if you had any favorite scenes, dialogue etc. to this story now that it is complete. :)


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